


My name is human

by Winchester_destiel



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Benny Lafitte & Dean Winchester Friendship, Big Brother Dean Winchester, Cas works at a bookshop, Castiel/Dean Winchester First Kiss, Charlie Bradbury & Dean Winchester Friendship, Destiel - Freeform, Grief/Mourning, Homophobic Behavior, Homophobic Language, Hurt Sam Winchester, Loss, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Protective Dean Winchester, Protective Gabriel (Supernatural), Punk Castiel (Supernatural), punk! castiel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-15
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-02-25 21:42:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 21,312
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21782377
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Winchester_destiel/pseuds/Winchester_destiel
Summary: Castiel Novak is new at Kansas High School. There he meets a very handsome boy. Cas normally doesn't let himself get close to people but there is just something about Dean that he can't resist.Cas doesn't believe that he can ever be loved, especially with a past like his. He doesn't like to talk about 'the accident' and the months after that, though bottling it up could endanger his relationship with Dean...He has to realize that he not only can be loved but that he is falling for Dean too. Will he be able to overcome his fears and tell Dean everything before worse things can happen...?
Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester, Dorothy Baum/Charlie Bradbury
Comments: 9
Kudos: 19





	1. New beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, guys, I hope you'll like this new story.  
> Sorry, I've been kind of on hiatus over the past six months but life is stressful.  
> Anyway, I'm back, though I have no idea how long this fic will be though I'm planning for it to be a long one.  
> More tags will follow as the story progresses.  
> Winchester_destiel

Castiel was sitting in his car trying to calm his nerves. It was his first day at this new school and even though he has never been nervous before, especially when going to a new school, he was today. This school was a really expensive one and his brother had to work a lot to be able to afford for him to go and that’s why he didn’t want to fuck it up. 

Taking another deep breath he exited his car and walked up to the tall building. Nobody was outside since it was stormy and it had started raining. Cas entered and took off his hoodie. Several pairs of eyes fell onto him and he already knew why; he wasn’t like the other kids. They were all nicely dressed with combed-back hair and expensive clothes. Cas on the other hand had messy black hair with blue tips, a shirt with a skull on it and on top a black leather jacket with random pins and quotes all over it, ripped black jeans and black boots. He had several tattoos covering his body which luckily weren’t visible. Cas had also several piercings beginning from a helix on his ear, over one on his eyebrow to one on his lower lip and to top it all off he had painted his fingernails black, except for his middle finger which was the same color as his hair. 

Without reacting to anyone’s stares or whispers he walked to his locker. He had already been here after everybody had left on friday to get his lesson plan and see his locker. He opened it and put some of his textbooks in there. His first class was history and he made his way to the classroom. 

Upon entering all eyes looked at him; some with curiosity and some with confusion. The teacher turned towards him, a fake smile on her lips. 

“You must be Mr. Novak. I’m Mrs. Tapping,” she said. 

“Yes.” She motioned for him to walk towards her before walking to the side herself. 

“Why don’t you introduce yourself?” She suggested. That was what Cas always hated when he was at a new school; the introduction. He cleared his throat before gazing over the students in front of him. 

“Hey I’m Castiel Novak, I’m 18 years old and i just moved here with my family,” he concluded. She thanked him before saying that he should take a seat. He looked around the room before finding one empty seat next to another boy. He sat down next to him and pulled out his pencil case which was scribbled on with different colors during boring lessons and his notebook. The lesson went by quickly and it was even a bit interesting. 

Castiel walked into the cafeteria at lunch and grabbed a meal, sitting down at an empty table. He wasn’t really keen on making new friends and so he just sat there in silence, starting to read ‘ _All the bright places_.’ It was his favorite book and he loved reading it. Someone sat down next to him and when he looked up from his food he saw a boy looking at him with a smug and amused grin. 

“Yea?” he asked unsure of what to say. 

“I’m Alastair and because you’re new I just wanted to let you know that I’m the one who practically rules this school and if you want to have a good time here, I would try to stay out of trouble with me or my people. Otherwise you’ll have a pretty bad time.” Cas thought he was joking. No way did this guy just threaten him. So Cas fixed him with a gaze of his own.

“Do you really think you can intimidate me?” he asked angrily. Alastair’s grin widened even more but before he could say something, someone started saying through the speakers, 

_”Castiel Novak to the principal's office. I repeat; Castiel Novak to the principal's office.”_ Cas frowned at that but packed away his stuff and made his way to the office. Behind him, he could hear Alastair say.

“This is going to be fun.”

On his way to the office he was a little nervous. Mostly because he hadn’t beaten anyone up, yet, so there should be no reason for him to be called there. Castiel entered the room, curious to see what they wanted from him. The principal, an older man in his mid-fifties, gestured for him to take a seat. 

“Hello, Mr. Novak. I hope you’re having a great first day at Kansas High,” he greeted to which Cas just nodded, “anyway I wanted to tell you some of the school’s rules since you probably don’t know them.” Cas looked at him with furrowed brows. He didn’t like where this conversation was going. 

“Our school likes rules and if these are broken, there will be consequences. One of our rules concerns the appearance of our students,” he said. He paused as to look for the right words.

“Your appearance isn’t quite...appropriate according to the school rules. For example, the dyed hair; it isn’t against school regulations for students to have colored hair but only natural colors. This would mean that you have to dye them another color. Furthermore, the outfit; we don’t allow students to wear ripped clothes or with… provocative designs and quotes on them. And the last part would be accessories such as piercing since-”

“Oh, I’m not taking my piercings out. I can deal with all the other stuff you said I couldn’t wear but I’m not taking them off. They close within hours and that would mean I’d have to re-pierce them every day and I’m not doing that.” he said sternly. He would take off the other stuff but he wouldn’t take his rings out. The principal thought about this for a moment and then sighed. 

“Okay fine,” he said, “you may go now Mr. Novak,” he said ending their conversation. 

Cas was so annoyed right now, that he went outside and behind the school building, taking a cigaret out of his pocket and lighting it up. He inhaled, the smoke, filling his lungs. He closed his eyes exhaling slowly. He already hated this school. Though this one was the only school that could get him into the college he wanted to get in, and the only one with an art program included...he told himself that it was only for a bit more than a year and then he would get out of there. He still couldn’t believe how they took so much of their individuality from the students. He took another few pulls before throwing it to the ground and stomping it out with his heel. 

After school he drove to the supermarket to get some nail polish removal, hair dye, another pack of cigarettes and some other stuff he needed. Gabe was already at home when he entered their house. 

“Hey little bro, how was your first day?” he asked excitedly. Without saying something he placed the bag from the supermarket onto the table and walked to the fridge taking out a beer.

“Cas, you know the rules with alcohol,” Gabe said seriously.

“Gabe, please?” he pleaded. Gabe must have sensed how bad Cas was feeling because he said. 

“So bad huh?” he asked sitting down next to his brother. The blue-eyed boy took a big swing of his beer before answering. 

“It was okay.”

“But?”

“But this one jerk threatened me to behave or otherwise he would make my time there be like hell and then the principal told me that I have to change my appearance or otherwise there will be _consequences_ ,” Castiel concluded taking another sip. Gabe let out an amused huff of air.

“That sucks but you’ll get through this,” he assured his younger brother. After dinner, Cas went upstairs and put the black hair dye into his hair. While it was getting absorbed, he removed the nail polish on his nails. The water in the shower was black, swirling around on the floor. When Cas looked at himself in the mirror, he felt weird. He hadn’t seen himself without dyed hair in almost three years and now it was like looking at a stranger. His eyes drifted off to the tattoos on his skin. He had gotten his first one on his wrist after his brother had died. It was a dark chapter in his life he didn’t want to think about. He quickly averted his gaze and instead made his way into his bedroom to get dressed and go to bed. 

The next day he put on a pair of jeans without holes and a plain, long-sleeved shirt. He almost grabbed his black leather jacket out of habit but then put on his beige trench coat. Even though he wasn’t wearing it a lot he still loved that coat and felt like he could smite people with it. Downstairs he grabbed some breakfast and then entered his car. He drove to school blasting some _Palaye Royale_ . He was still so pissed that he was supposed to repress who he was. He could feel the stares of the other kids on him while he walked to class.  
Inside the classroom he sat down and tried to ignore the stares and smug gazes Alastair and his friends were shooting his way. He felt weird without his favorite jacket or with his black hair, that was hanging in front of his face a little because he hadn’t gotten around to cutting it yet. He pulled his necklace out of his shirt and started fidgeting with it, mostly out of habit while he tried to pay attention to the lesson. The boy with the green eyes sat down next to him and smiled slightly. Cas did the same, trying to push his anger down. Cas had no idea why but this boy, who he may already have a crush on, was calming him down with his mere presence. The classes went by quickly and soon lunch came around. 

He sat down at a table, alone and started eating. He didn’t really register that someone sat across from him until a voice spoke up. 

“Hey can I sit here?” the boy from one of his classes said. The one Cas was crushing on, to be exact. Castiel gestured to one of the many empty chairs to which he complied.

“So...I’m Dean,” the boy across from him said. 

“Castiel.” Dean cleared his throat before asking.

“What made you change your look?” Cas sighted, taking another bite from his food. 

“Well seems like your school has a really strict policy concerning clothes and if I hadn’t changed there would be _‘consequences’_ ,” he said annoyed and the other boy laughed. He had a really nice smile and the sound of his laughter was happy and bright. 

“Yea they are assholes. I had piercings in before I came here and they made me take them out. How did you manage to keep yours in?” Cas smirked a little at that.

“I made it clear that I’m not going to re-pierce my ears every day. He didn’t want to argue, apparently.” The two boys started laughing at that heavily. Another boy sat down next to them. 

“So what are you two laughing about?” he asked. He had short dark-blond hair and a British accent. He reached his hand out towards Cas.

“Hey I’m Benny, Dean’s best friend since kindergarten,” he stated. 

“So what’s so funny?” he asked again. 

“Nothing,” Dean said before taking a sip from his water.

"Well Dean-o over here seems to like you if he leaves me alone, so sit with you," he said with a smirk. Dean almost choked on his water.

"I..Uhm...was just trying to be nice, I mean he's new here after all," he said with a slight blush. Cas couldn't help the small smile when he saw Dean get all flustered, it was cute.

"Nah don't worry, it's nice of you..." Dean raised an eyebrow at that. "Really?" Cas nodded.

“I’ve gotta go now, I hope you’ll have a great time," Benny said before leaving the two boys alone again. 

Cas was about to say something when the bell rang and both of them almost jumped in their seats from the tension between them. 

“I gotta go,” Dean said before leaving the cafeteria. Cas made his way to his next class trying not to think about what he just learned and that he kinda outed himself already. 

He was walking down the almost empty halls on his way home when he saw Alastair and his friend corner a ninth-grader. They had formed a circle around him and Alastair was grabbing him by his collar, a devilish grin on his lips. 

“Hey!” Cas said making his way towards them. Alastair turned his head towards him, his smile falling a little. 

“Get lost Novak, this is none of your business,” he growled turning back to the kid. Cas approached a little more, standing right behind him. When the other boy turned around a fist collided with his face and he tumbled backwards, away from the kid. He recovered quickly and was now walking towards Cas, anger masking his features. He lunged at Cas who dodged his blow easily before hitting him in the guts making him bow over in pain. Castiel didn’t hesitate a second before repeating his motion, sending the taller boy to the ground. Suddenly someone was turning him around before he felt pain rush through his face. Alastair’s friend had punched him. He tried to straighten up again but another fist collided with his face, blood running out of his nose. Cas was able to dodge the next hit and instead landed one on his attacker who backed away. 

After a few more punches, Alastair and his friend were beaten up pretty bad, retreating. 

“This isn’t over,” he said before walking away. Cas looked after them for a second before he turned to the scared teen, crouching down to be on his eye level. 

“Hey, you okay?” He asked softly. The boy just shook his head, too shocked to answer. 

“What’s your name?” He asked. Before the boy could answer another voice could be heard, followed by quick footsteps. 

“Sammy?” Cas turned around and saw Dean almost running towards them before falling to his knees himself, hugging the younger boy. After a few moments, he asked.

“What happened?” 

“Some boys cornered me as I was walking to the parking lot and wanted to I don’t know , I guess have fun or whatever. If he hadn’t been here, I didn’t know what would have happened,” Sam said gesturing towards Cas. This was the first time Dean acknowledged him, turning his full attention towards the blue-eyes boy. 

“Is this true?” He asked to which Castiel only nodded. 

“Thanks, Cas. I don’t know what to say. I want to take you to dinner for helping my brother,” he suddenly suggested. Castiel’s eyes widened slightly. 

“No it’s fine you don’t have to...”

“I insist, please?” He pleaded. Cas hadn’t wanted to say yes, to already have a ‘date’ on his first week here, but Dean was looking so sincere, Cas couldn't resist. 

“Fine,” he said with a small smile on his lips. Dean’s face lit up at that.

“Okay, I’ll pick you up at 7 pm on Friday.” 

Cas was driving home, excitement flooding his system. He couldn’t believe what just happened. He was still trying to sort things out and it was anything but easy, to be honest. He not only helped Dean’s brother, but Dean now wanted to go for dinner with him, though probably only as friends. Cas was very confused because these things never happened to him but he wouldn’t deny them. If life for once decided that he could have something nice, then he wouldn’t question it.


	2. Dinner and maths

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas and Dean have dinner. It turns out they have a few things in common...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took me so long to update guys. Christmas was pretty stressful.  
> Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and hope you like this chapter.

The next days went by pretty fast and soon it was Friday afternoon. Cas was standing in front of his closet, trying to figure out what he should wear. It wasn’t a date but it was still something he couldn’t quite name. Cas was pretty nervous even though he had been on a few dates before.  _ ‘No, not a date,’ _ he told himself. Just friends going out. There was just something about Dean that made him all soft inside, and he didn’t know if he liked that or not. He didn’t know if Dean had done it out of guilt or if he actually wanted to spend time with Castiel. He hoped it was the latter but he couldn’t be sure. Cas just hoped that Dean hadn’t just been pretending at school and that he was actually this funny and kind... 

Cas decided to wear black jeans that were ripped at the knees and a blue button-up with his leather jacket on top. He combed through his hair with his hands, trying to make it somewhat presentable though he gave up after a few minutes figuring out that there was no use to it. 

“Where are you going?” His brother asked as he walked down the stairs. 

“Out to dinner,” he said grabbing a glass and filling it with water. 

“With whom?”

“Dean,” Cas said with a small smile, trying to hide his blush. He knew that his brother must have noticed because he said with a smirk. “Oh, so it’s a date?” 

“No, he just wanted to thank me because I saved his brother from that jerk, Alastair,” Cas explained. 

“So that’s why you look so beaten up again? I hope you aren’t in any trouble,” his brothers' voice got serious for a moment, eyes hardening a bit. Cas knew that look and it was his  _ ‘big, protective brother’  _ look. Cas shook his head. He knew Gabriel was just trying to make sure he was okay and he really tried to be better at this school, mostly for his Gabe. 

“Okay, fine but you’ll be home by 1 am.”

“Fine,” he frowned. It was Friday after all but at least it was something. If they even stayed out that long in the first place. 

Suddenly Castiel’s phone vibrated in his pocket. He got it out and saw a message from Dean.

**Dean: I’m outside.**

**Castiel: Ok.**

“Gotta go. I know, I’ll be careful,” Cas said quickly as he saw his brother open his mouth, and then he was out the door.

He walked up to the sleek, black car and entered. He wasn’t exactly nervous but he was curious to see how this night would play out and if they could hang out more, outside of school. 

“Hey,” Dean greeted before starting up the engine and driving out of Castiel’s driveway. 

“Hey,” Cas said back smiling. The drive was silent both probably not knowing what to say. Thankfully, it wasn’t a long one and after almost seven minutes, they arrived at a burger place. 

Inside both ordered a bacon cheeseburger with fries and a coke. 

“So...thanks again for helping my brother,” Dean said as they settled down at a booth. 

“It was nothing but...you’re welcome,” he said. 

“I hope you won’t get in trouble for that,” he continued sounding a little bit concerned. 

“I don’t know but I can handle it, really. Wouldn’t be the first time,” Cas joked trying to make light of the conversation. 

“Anyways...how did you even get here. I mean you are clearly not the type this school would prefer?” Cas took a swing from his drink. 

“I mostly came here because they are the only school that has an art program that can get me into some good colleges later. Also, my brother had to move back here because of his work and since I live with him, I came here too. It’s a good school I guess just a little bit too…”

“Conservative?” Dean finished for him.

“Yea,” Cas said blushing slightly, “Is your brother okay though?” Cas asked trying to steer the conversation away from him and his family. He didn’t like talking about them. Dean seemed to notice the change in topic but didn’t comment on it. 

“Yea he’s fine. Got some scratches but nothing that can’t be fixed,” the green-eyed boy said smiling. 

It was silent and Cas carefully looked up from his drink to see that Dean was looking at him. They stared at each other for a few moments until the waitress brought their orders, making them look away awkwardly. They ate in silence, both focused on their food until Dean asked.

“So...are you..uhm...you know...together with someone...?” Cas almost choked on his burger, coughing heavily as he tried to hide his blush. He took a big swing from his almost empty glass before he said. “No...broke up with my boyfriend a few months before I came here, so no...you?” Cas asked carefully. Cas didn’t care if people knew about his sexuality and if Dean had a problem with it, he could leave. Instead, Dean blushed heavily before he said.

“Me neither...you...uhm, like boys too?” He averted his eyes, his cheeks reddening more. Cas smiled because it was kind of cute.

“Yup, I’m pan. Don’t care about the package as long as they are nice and we make each other happy.” Dean looked back up at him and there was something like hope in his eyes. 

“Really? Awesome. I’ve been waiting for another open and proud person at this school. I’m bi and it’s really annoying when the teachers act as if everybody in the classroom is straight,” Dean said with a grin.    
Cas smiled back as he took in the information. Dean was bi, so maybe his feelings could be reciprocated, at least at some point.  _ ‘Slow down, maybe he isn’t into you,’ _ he told himself.

“Well, now you’re not alone anymore,” Cas said. 

After that, the conversation went on and they talked for a long time, both in a good mood. It was around 12:45 am when Cas said that he had promised his brother to be home by 1 am. He expected Dean to laugh or comment on it but he only smiled and said. 

“Yeah okay, I get that. Protective big brother hun?” Cas just nodded. Dean paid, even though Cas didn’t want him to but Dean didn’t take no for an answer. 

Inside Dean’s car again, they listened to music while talking about school mostly. They arrived at Castiel’s house and Dean stopped the engine, turning over towards Cas. 

“So here we are I guess,” he said sounding almost sad. Cas turned so that he was able to have a better look at the green-eyed boy.

“I would invite you in but my brother is there and he probably wants to go to bed anyway...” Cas said shyly. He did want Dean to come inside but he knew that first it was late and Gabe wouldn’t be too happy about that, and second it was probably too early in their relationship to do that.

“Yea,” Dean chuckled embarrassedly. Cas turned around to go but Dean grabbed his arm softly before he could leave. He looked at the other boy, eyes slightly widened.

“I had fun today. I would like to hang out again but only if you want to,” Dean said. Cas smiled and nodded.

“Yes, I would like that,” before finally leaving and making his way up to his porch. 

Gabriel was sitting on the sofa in the living room reading a book when Cas entered. 

“How was your date?” he asked curiously. Cas sighed.

“It wasn’t a date,” he insisted but couldn’t hide the smile on his face.

“Sure,” Gabe stretched walking towards the kitchen to fill himself a glass of water. Cas was about to walk to his room when his brother called behind him,

“Cas, wait.” Gabriel walked up to him, a serious expression on his face, “just one thing; please be careful. I don’t care how nice this boy seems to be. Just take care of yourself. Please.” Cas didn’t know what to say. After  _ The Accident _ , his brother was always saying that he should be careful no matter what the topic was. So he just stayed serious, looking into his brothers' eyes.

“I will,” he promised before finally leaving to go to his room. Castiel stripped down to his boxers and then laid down on the bed, reaching for his phone on the nightstand and checking his messages. He had two from Dean. 

**Dean: I’m home.**

**Dean: Good night, Cas**

Cas smiled before tipping a quick reply.

**Castiel: That’s great.**

**Castiel: Good night, Dean.**

Over the next week, Cas and Dean had been texting a bit outside of school, and Cas had to say that it was really fun and they had even met on Sunday, though only for a bit, because Dean had to go get Sam from a friends house. Cas was still happy and he couldn’t deny that his crush was growing. Even if Dean didn’t want to be in a relationship with him, he would love to at least be friends with him.

On Monday, Cas was sitting in his math class, when suddenly someone sat down next to him. In the last two lessons, he had been sitting alone, mostly because he was the new kid and nobody wanted to sit next to the  _ ‘punk’ _ . When he looked up from his book though, he saw Dean smiling at him. 

“Hey is this seat free?” he asked. 

“Yes, it is. Since when are you in my class anyway?” Cas asked, cocking his head to the side.

“Uh...from the beginning but I had to convince Benny first to let me sit next to somebody else...so yea... and I didn’t know you back then...” Dean said blushing. Cas couldn’t believe that Dean would actually want to sit next to Cas, after only knowing each other for two weeks. The fact that he would give up sitting next to his best friend so that he could sit next to Cas… he couldn’t help but smile at that thought. 

“So do you get the homework we had?” Dean asked after taking out his notebook.

“Well, I have some part of it, though not all. How about you?” Cas asked pulling out his notebook too. 

“Me too. Which part do you have?” he asked. Turns out, each one had the part the other one didn’t have. The teacher entered the classroom the moment Cas was explaining something to Dean. He pulled back and turned towards the front. The first few minutes of the lesson passed quietly until a piece of paper was placed onto his notebook from Dean. 

**_Hey, wanna study together since we are both two halves of a whole average student in math?_ **

Cas chuckled when he read the note but took his pencil and scribbled down an answer. 

**_That sounds great. When and where?_ **

**_What about today after school? My place?_ **

Cas was about to answer when the teacher turned his attention towards them. 

“Mr. Winchester are you paying attention to my lesson?” he asked, eyebrows raised. Cas hadn't noticed that Dean had been looking at him, waiting for an answer instead of paying attention. 

“What?” he asked confused. 

“I asked you if the answer on the blackboard is correct.” Dean looked at the few lines of numbers on the blackboard. Great, it had been the part of the homework Cas had tried to teach Dean this morning. 

“Um…” Another student raised his hand. 

“Yes, Mr. Roman?” the teacher asked. 

“Yes it’s correct,” he said. Cas looked at the answer. 

“It’s actually not. If you want to find out x, then you have to divide the whole equation by 3, in order for the x^2 to be without another number in front of it. So you would have to divide it first by 3,” Cas said smugly, turning to see the smile fade from this kids' face. He had to say that he liked seeing this kid get it wrong. The teacher, Mr. Adler just nodded, clearly not happy about the fact that Cas got it right or that he spoke without raising his hand, and the continued the lesson. 

“Thanks,” Dean whispered, smiling softly. 

“No problem. Today after school?” Cas said and Dean nodded. 

After school, they drove to Dean’s house. Cas was pretty nervous even though he didn’t show it. They only needed fifteen minutes to arrive in front of an old brick construction. 

“So...this is my house,” Dean said as he turned the engine off and exited the car. Inside it was old and a bit messy, with boxes lying around, some had words written on them and stuffed to the brim and some were almost empty. They went straight upstairs and into the first room on the right. It was small but it looked cozy. The first thing Cas saw was a king-sized bed with blue sheets and next to it a nightstand with a few pictures. Above it was a big Star Trek poster and next to it were a few pictures taped to the wall. The rest of it was pretty standard; a desk, a bookcase, and a closet. 

“That’s my room. Sorry if it’s a bit messy,” Dean said pulling Cas out of his thoughts. 

“Nah don’t worry. My room looks way worse,” he said chuckling. They looked at each other for a few moments before Dean continued speaking.

“I’m sorry that I don’t have a second chair. I hope you don’t mind if we sit on the floor. It’s just that I don’t want my little brother distracting us if we sit in the kitchen. He’s at a friend's house but I don’t know when he’ll be home but it would be annoying if we had to move all of our stuff then.” he apologized.    
“No don’t worry. I do my homework on the floor most times anyways since I don’t have a desk yet in my room,” he said and sat down, starting to pull out his books. Dean did the same thing and soon they started working on their homework for the next day. It actually went really well and they were able to explain everything to each other so that both of them could understand it. 

“What do you say we take a little break?” Dean suggested at some point. They had been working for a few hours and it sounded like a really good idea. 

“Yea that sounds great,” Castiel said but didn’t make an attempt to move and instead looked at Dean. They stared at each other for a few moments, before Dean cleared his throat and then pulled back a little. 

“Yea let’s go,” he said and stood up walking towards the door. Cas could have sworn that hadn’t they moved that he would have kissed Dean, right then and there. Consequences be damned. 

Downstairs, he sat down at the kitchen table while Dean prepared some snacks and something to drink which gave Cas time to look around the room a bit more. It was old, like the rest of the house, the cabinets a dark brown color. The table was made out of the same dark wood and when Cas looked a little closer he saw that there were cuts and pieces missing from the material as if someone had carved something out. He wondered if the cuts were new or if they had bought the table with the scratches.

Castiel was startled when a hand was placed onto his shoulder making him jump. 

“Didn’t wanna scare you. What do you say we go sit on the couch? It’s more comfortable,” Dean suggested and Cas just nodded following along. 

They sat there in silence each one eating out of the bowls. 

“So thanks again for helping me not look like a complete idiot in class today,” Dean said suddenly and Cas turned his head to have a better look at him. 

“Hey no need to thank me. That dude is a jerk and I say that after having him for like two weeks,” Cas chuckled.

“True.” Cas was about to say something when his phone started buzzing. He pulled it out of his pocket and frowned when he saw who it was. 

“Hey Gabe,” he said.

“Cas where the hell are you?” he asked concern and anger in his voice. 

“I’m sorry Gabe. I’m at Dean’s studying. I forgot to text you,” he said, voice apologetic. It was silent for a few moments before his brother sighed.

“Okay fine. just be home at around seven,” he said voice calmer now.

“I will. Sorry again for not telling you.”

“Yea, I know you are and be safe.”

“I will,” Cas promised before hanging up. He was so angry with himself for forgetting to text his brother. He just sat there taking a few deep breaths as he stared at the phone in his hand. 

“Hey, everything okay?” Dean asked making Cas look back up at him. 

“Yes,” he assured with a smile,” just my brother.” 

“Do you have to go?” Dean asked, sadness flickering over his features for a second. Cas looked at the watch around his wrist and smiled. 

“No, not yet,” he assured the other boy before taking another bite from his snack. 

“Dean?” they heard a voice say from around the corner as the front door was opened and closed. A few seconds later, Dean’s younger brother walked into the living room, a book in his hand. When Cas took a better look, he saw that the cover of it was actually missing and was in the younger boy’s other hand.

“What happened?” Dean asked as he rushed towards his brother, kneeling down in front of him. Cas followed his motion and only then did he notice that Sam had a bruise blooming on his cheek. 

“Who did this to you?” Dean asked, clearly trying to keep the anger out of his voice. He reached out and carefully traced the red skin. The other boy flinched a little at the touch but then stayed still, letting his brother look at the rest of his face. 

“Those boys that had harassed me a few days ago,” he admitted, voice quiet, as tears were threatening to fall down his face. Dean stood up, pacing the room, hands balling into fists next to his body. Cas walked over to them, before turning so that he was facing Sam.

“Hey, why don’t you go to the bathroom already. Dean will be there in a minute and then he can help you clean up,” Cas suggested, a friendly smile on his lips. The younger boy just nodded before walking off down the hall.

“Those damn sons of bitches. I am going to kill them,” Dean growled. Cas walked up to him, putting a hand on his shoulder, making him stop and turn towards him. 

“Dean, calm down. I know you want to beat the shit out of them. Hell, even  _ I  _ want to but now you have to be there for your brother and then you can be pissed. I don’t think you want your brother to see you like this,” he said voice calm and soothing. Dean just glared at him for a few seconds before his body relaxed under Castiel’s touch and his face went back to a more neutral expression. They stayed again only inches away from each other and Cas could feel Dean’s breath on his face. Cas pulled back though, breaking the intense atmosphere before speaking. 

“I think you should go help your brother,” he suggested. 

“Yea,” Dean said before making his way towards the bathroom. 

When Dean came out again, Cas was still there, reading a book. 

“You’re still here,” Dean said when he saw him a bit confused. 

“Of course. How is your brother?” he asked.

“He’s fine,” Dean assured while Cas was putting his book away and fixing his gaze back at Dean, “though I have to go now,” he concluded picking up his stuff. He was at the door when the other boy spoke up. 

“Wait. I can drive you,” he suggested grabbing his keys. 

“You don’t have to…” Castiel began but Dean was already opening the door. “Don’t worry, I love driving my Baby,” Cas just followed him to the car. 

The ride was about ten minutes long and when they arrived in front of Castiel’s house, Gabe was standing at the front door, waiting impatiently, arms crossed over his chest. Dean turned the engine off and looked at Cas.

“Thanks for coming over and studying. It was really nice,” Dean said and they stared at each other again. Cas could have sworn he would have made a move, again, if his brother hadn’t called out behind them. 

“Castiel, come on!” So he pulled away and excited, giving Dean a last smile before turning around and walking towards his brother.


	3. Seems like rain can be a good thing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Protective Gabe.  
> Heavy rainfall leads to unexpected actions.  
> Cas meets one of Dean's friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry I didn't upload yesterday but I was sick the last few days and couldn't really write much.  
> I hope you'll enjoy this chapter.  
> Winchester_destiel

When Cas closed the front door and turned around to his brother, he looked pissed. 

“What the hell Cas? I thought I had told you to call me when you go somewhere after school,” Gabe said accusingly. Cas sighed, feeling guilty. He knew he had promised to always tell his brother where he was but he just forgot.

“I’m sorry. I forgot and then we started studying and then hours passed. I was about to call you when my phone rang,” Castiel said, trying to calm his brother down. 

“Bullshit,” he exclaimed. 

“Yeah okay, you are right. I’m sorry it won’t happen again,” he said, starting to get angry. He knew his brother was worried about him and Cas knew why but he was just so sick of this. So without another word, he left and went to his room, leaving his brother standing in the hallway.

The blue-eyed boy let himself fall onto his bed and thought about the events of today; he had studied with Dean, his crush and he could have  _ sworn  _ that Dean wanted to kiss him too. He just  _ knew  _ it. Cas had no ideas what got into him. He never really tried to make friends because they moved a lot, or at least used to, so he never bothered, let alone have a crush. He groaned into his pillow, frustrated and angry. He didn’t sleep well that night, nightmares keeping him awake like they often did.

The next morning when Cas went to the kitchen, Gabriel wasn’t there. A note on the counter told him that he had to leave early for work and that he will see Cas this evening. Cas frowned and got ready. Great, that meant he had to walk to school he thought as he looked out the window towards their driveway. Some idiot had blocked their driveway and Cas couldn’t get his car out. Normally, he didn’t have a problem with walking, except that it was raining heavily. He looked at his watch and saw that he was already too late so he grabbed his backpack and ran out of his house. Only when he was searching through his stuff, already at the beginning of the forest he had to walk through, he noticed that he forgot to take an umbrella. He angrily closed his backpack and trench coat, quickening his pace to get to school, without getting soaked. 

Obviously, that didn’t work and he arrived not only too late but also dripping with water. He took off his jacket and entered the room, fully aware that his shirt was clinging to his body. His coat wasn’t water repellent, so his shirt and pants were wet too. Cas was pretty muscular, even though it wasn’t that obvious expect if he wore a slim fitted shirt or button up but now, shirt clinging to him like that, you could definitely see his muscles. 

He was walking to his seat when he suddenly locked eyes with Dean. He hadn’t even realized that he was in his English class. Dean blushed when Cas noticed his eyes wandering over his body and he quickly looked away, his face getting redder. Cas sat down and had to try and control his smile. No way Dean was checking him out. Yes they were friends and he was bi but that didn’t mean he was interested in Cas. Let alone, was looking at him  _ that  _ way. Cas wouldn’t mind, after all, he had a crush on his classmate but that didn’t mean his feelings would be returned. The rest of the lesson he was fully aware of Dean’s glances but he tried to ignore them and focus on the lecture. Cas wouldn’t jump to conclusions or anything just yet. The only thing that was annoying him was that his teacher didn’t allow him to go get changed or at least dry off. 

Ater class Dean waited for Cas at the door and then they started walking. Cas hadn’t even been paying attention where they were heading until Dean suddenly stopped in front of his locker. He opened it and rummaged through it before he found was he was looking for, turning back around towards Castiel and handing him two pieces of clothing. 

“Here,” he said with a shy smile.

“What is this?” Cas asked, raising an eyebrow. Dean looked down for a few seconds before lifting his eyes again, looking a little unsure of himself. 

“Well...I thought maybe you want to wear something that is a little less...wet,” Dean said blushing furiously. Cas smiled thankfully. It was actually kind of cute of Dean to give him his clothes, even though they only knew each other for a few weeks.  _ No, not cute. Control yourself, Novak. _ He scolded himself.

“Thanks,” he said but didn’t move, just stayed there, looking at Dean. The other boy looked back at Cas, neither of them moving for a bit until Dean cleared his throat and stepped back a bit. 

“That’s what friends are for, right?” Dean was clearly flustered and his cheeks were bright red. Cas had to admit that his heart was racing as well, even though he never was nervous around people he had a crush on but Dean was different. He made Cas all soft and warm inside and he didn’t know if this was a good thing or not. He decided it was though because even though they didn’t know each other for long, Dean made him happy.

“So are you gonna change?” Dean asked. Cas nodded walking towards the bathroom, Dean following behind. When they reached the restroom and Cas entered and he saw Dean hesitate. 

“What is it?” the blue-eyed boy asked, looking concerned. Dean shifted his weight a little.

“Are you sure I shouldn't just wait here?” Dean rubbed his neck nervously.

“No, and now come before I freeze my ass off,” he said with a chuckle before entering. Luckily it was empty and Cas closed the door.

He let his backpack fall to the ground before he took off his jacket and placed it on one of the sinks. Cas tried not to look at Dean as we took the hem of his shirt and pushed it over his head, exposing his naked skin and tattoos. It was cold without the extra layer of clothing, even if it had been wet. Without it he felt really exposed and even though he didn’t have a problem with his body, it was still awkward, especially with Dean behind him. He turned towards Dean to get the pieces of clothing he had given him back to hold while he undressed and kind of froze; Dean had been looking at him and now his eyes snapped up to Castiel’s face in an attempt to hide what he just did. Cas couldn’t hold back the sarcastic comment.

“Like what you see?” he teased as he reached out and took the hoodie and pants from the other boy. He placed the pants on the sink for now and grabbed the hoodie. Cas knew that Dean had been looking at his tattoos and still was, to be honest, even if it wasn’t that obvious anymore.  _ Maybe he just likes tattoos _ , Cas thought to himself.  _ Yeah right, that’ll be it _ , came the answer of his sarcastic brain. Castiel put the hoodie on, immediately grateful for the heat it provided. He loved the smell because it was so uniquely Dean.  _ Whoa, chill Cas, he’s just a friend. Can’t think about him that way _ , he reprimanded himself. 

Instead, he turned around and looked at himself in the mirror. Dean and him had almost the same height but his body was a bit more muscular than Castiel’s, making the piece of clothing look a bit too big for his frame.

Then he kicked off his shoes and started opening his own pants. Dean blushed and turned around to give Cas some privacy which he was grateful for. He quickly changed and put his shoes back on. It looked like even though Dean had a broader upper body, their hips and legs were about the same. 

“You can turn back around,” Cas said and Dean did, his blush gone by now. “So what do you think?” he asked, stuffing his old shirt into his bag. Dean swallowed audibly, his eyes running over the clothes. 

“Good.” he said. They excited after a bit and then went to their next class. Castiel couldn’t help but think about how flustered Dean had been the whole time Cas was changing and if maybe Dean was somehow attracted to him too. He really hoped so but he wouldn’t get his hopes up too high. At least not yet anyway. 

At lunch, Cas walked into the cafeteria and walked over to get his food before walking over to sit opposite to Dean.

“Hey,” he greeted Dean.

“Hey so what do you say we continue our study sessions?” Dean suggested and Cas smiled and nodded.

“Yes I would like that,” They were eating for a bit before Dean asked. 

“So…” Dean was about to say something when a redheaded girl sat next to him. 

“Dean I haven’t seen you in like a week. What happened?” She asked, not noticing Cas. 

“Charlie...this is Castiel.” He said gesturing towards Cas. She turned her attention towards him and smiled happily at him.

“Hey, I’m Charlie Bradbury. Nice to meet you.” Cas smiled at her.

“Castiel Novak.”

“Dean why didn’t you tell me you had a new friend? He’s handsome.” Charlie winked at him and Cas blushed. Charlie caught his blush and said. “Don’t worry. I’m not hitting on you. Not interested in guys, at all.” Dean had stayed quiet as he looked at the two. He could tell they’d like each other. Cas then looked at Dean with a smirk.

“Dean, you said you were the only openly LGBT person at this school.” The redhead turned her attention towards Dean before punching his arm. 

“Dude, what am I then? Invisible? I swear if I hadn’t known you since middle school, I would erase you from the internet, and this earth,” She grinned at him. 

“I already like her,” Cas said with a satisfied look.

Dean was rubbing his arm as he looked at Cas and his smug expression. 

“Ow, that hurt,” Dean fake pouted. “You’re an idiot, you know that?” He teased Cas but Dean could play this game too. He thought about his question for a bit before he asked Cas casually. 

“So, Cas, what house are you in?” He expected the guy to not know what he was talking about but without hesitation he said. 

“Hufflepuff.” Charlie almost squeaked as she looked at a rather confused and slightly horrified Cas. 

“Dude, you’re awesome. I’m a Gryffindor. You a Potterhead?” Cas nodded. The rest of their lunch break, Cas and Charlie spend talking about Harry Potter and arguing about various characters and who they would bring back from the dead if they could. Dean had read the books and watched the movies, but he wasn’t that interested in debating with Charlie. He knew he’d lose anyway. At some point, he had called them nerds, which had earned him two prime bitchfaces from both of them. 

The bell rang and they gathered their stuff. Cas had to admit that he really liked Charlie. As the three were walking towards their lockers, Charlie looked at Cas with furrowed brows until it suddenly dawned on her and she grinned. 

“Oh my, are you wearing Dean’s clothes?” She asked with a raised eyebrow. Cas froze embarrassed, heat starting to run up his neck. 

“Uh…”

“He was soaking wet when he came to school, I couldn’t let him get sick. He’s my study partner, I need him,” he said casually. Charlie threw him a knowing look but he glared at her and she dropped it, for now. He knew he’d never hear the end of it.

Eventually, they split up and went to their last official class, since they had study period in the last hour anyway. 

The two boys met up in the library to work on their assignments. Cas really didn’t want to start working on it, he was really bad when it came to history. It wasn’t that he didn’t like the subject as such, but the way it was taught was just so boring. He sighed and Dean looked over to him. 

“You okay?” He asked a bit concerned. 

“Yeah, I’m just really not in the mood to do this. The topic is really not that interesting to me, to be honest.” Cas said as he turned to look at Dean. 

“What do you have to write about?” He asked.

“The influence the Medici family had in Italy.” Cas said with a frown.    
“Yea I’ve got no idea about stuff like that. Sammy is always the one interested in things like that,” Dean admitted with a shy smile. Cas looked him in the eyes, he had learned that it was hard to look away from those bright green orbs. Dean looked back and they just sat there staring at each other until Dean’s phone vibrated and they pulled away both blushing. He had gotten a message from Charlie. 

**Charlie: Careful Dean, you’re drooling.**   
Dean looked around and saw her standing by a bookshelf with a smirk on her lips. He quickly sent a reply. 

**Dean: Shut up.**

The rest of study period went by better than expected; Dean helped Cas find a few sources and books to that topic and Cas helped him a bit with his own assignment about Ernest Hemingway.

After school Cas was about to start heading home when Dean called out. 

“Hey, Cas. Need a ride?” Cas turned to see Dean standing by his car. 

“Yeah, that’d be great.” The drive wasn’t long but they spend it in comfortable silence, listening to music. Cas was surprised how easy it was to just spend time with Dean, and he had to admit to himself that it was scaring him a bit. He had never really felt that comfortable with somebody after such a short amount of time.


	4. Bad timing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas and Dean hang out more  
> Everybody has the worst timing...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello guys,  
> I'm sorry I haven't posted in three weeks but life has been very stressful. I will get back to posting once a week from now on or at least try to.  
> I hope you like this chapter.  
> Winchester_destiel

The next few days Cas and Dean spend studying together and texting. They did meet once to just hang out and the sexual tension was pretty strong. At least from Castiel's side.

It was Tuesday when things changed; Cas was on his way to his last class when he heard shouts coming from around the corner. He quickly made his way over there and gasped when he saw the scene in front of him; Dean had blood dripping from his lips as he swung at Alastair.

“Don’t you ever touch him again,” Dean growled as he threw himself at Alastair, tackling him to the ground and starting to punch him. The other boys’ friends were trying to get Dean away from him, but Dean struggled against them as he landed punch after punch.

Cas didn’t think as he rushed over there and pushed the other boys away from Dean. 

“Dean, let go,” Cas said as he put his hands onto Dean’s shoulders trying to pull him away. Dean growled as he threw another punch. 

“No, he hurt him and he’s going to pay for that.” Cas could hear voices and when he looked up he saw teachers making their way over to them.

“Shit,” he cursed as he finally pulled Dean off and wrapped his arms around him from behind, preventing any more punches. Dean struggled against him.

“Dean, let’s go, he isn’t worth it.” Dean moved for a bit more in his arms while Alastair slowly got up and glared at Dean. 

“This isn’t over yet,” he growled as his friends were pulling him away from the scene. Dean slowly relaxed in his arms and Cas didn’t wait as he dragged him out of the building, the teacher walked over to the group of students that had formed around them.

Cas didn’t let go of Dean’s arm until they reached Castiel’s car. 

“Get inside,” Cas ordered. He could see Dean wanting to argue but he cut him off.

“We’ll get your car later don’t worry. Sam has theater anyway so you have to get back here in a few hours anyway.” Dean grunted before entering.

Back at Castiel’s house, he sat Dean down on the edge of the bathtub as he got the first aid kit.

“What happened?” Cas asked as he started cleaning Dean’s face with disinfectant. 

“That dick harrassed Sammy again,” Dean told him before wincing a bit at the slight sting. 

“Sorry,” Cas apologized.

“It’s okay. Not the first time I got into a fight.” He chuckled. Cas just rolled his eyes before moving to his cheek and then to his lip. He tried to be careful as he dabbed the cotton against the side of Dean’s mouth. 

When he looked up from being focused on the other boys’ lips for so long, he saw Dean watching him intensely and only then did he notice how close they were. Cas caught Dean’s eyes and he was lost again; he couldn’t get enough of those emerald green eyes. He felt like he was in a clearing inside a forest, never wanting to leave. 

Cas almost didn’t notice Dean glancing at his lips before snapping his eyes back up and blushing slightly. Cas licked his lips unconsciously before he very slowly leaned forward. Dean did the same but before they were able to kiss, a voice called out from downstairs. 

“Cassie? You home?” They both pulled back quickly not really looking at the other one.

“Yes, Gabe I’m in the bathroom,” Cas informed his brother before standing up. Dean rubbed the back of his neck nervously. 

“Uh...yeah. Thanks for getting me out of there and making me look presentable again.” 

“No problem,” Cas said running a hand through his hair. This was awkward because now he was  _ sure  _ Dean wanted to kiss him too.

They spent some time in Castiel’s room, studying until Dean had to leave. Cas drove him back to school and asked, repeatedly, if he was really okay. 

“Yes, Cas, I’m fine. Really.” Dean reassured him. 

“Fine, see you tomorrow.” Dean looked at Cas for a few seconds before leaving with a smile. Cas sighed as he pulled out of the parking lot and made his way back home. 

“How is your boy doing? he looked pretty messed up,” Gabe asked him that evening over dinner. Cas just rolled his eyes. 

“He isn’t  _ my  _ boy. We’re just friends.” Cas said as he took a bite from his food.

“Yea, sure. But you do want more, don’t you?” Gabe knew him too well. He was right but he didn’t know if Dean wanted that too. Then he thought back to earlier that day and how Dean had leaned in as well, and how he had stayed in his car a few more seconds as if he had been debating something. 

“Yes, I do.” Gabe just chuckled as he sipped his soda. 

“I knew it,” He said with a grin. “You are practically drooling every time you see him.” 

“Shut up,” Cas said with a slight blush. 

Wednesday passed uneventful, Cas didn’t do anything. He had wanted to meet with Dean but his brother had a very bad headache and so Dean stayed home after school and took care of him.    
Thursday Cas had gym class. Or well track practice. He quickly got dressed and then went out on the field and started warming up.   
“Hey Cas,” Dean greeted as he walked next to Cas and started stretching. Cas looked up at him and froze. Dean was wearing a tank top that was hugging his chest just perfectly, as his arms stretched with every move.  _ Fuck, he looks hot _ Cas thought before snapping his eyes to Dean’s face only to get lost in his green eyes.

“Hello Dean,” Cas said as he tried to hide his blush by looking away.    
They warmed up in silence after that and soon the coach told them that they would be doing some endurance runs today. The boys got ready and started running.   
“So Cas...that the best you can do?” Dean teased with a huge grin as he passed Cas. Castiel, always open for a challenge, sped up and soon caught up with Dean, as they raced each other and passed a lot of the other students while doing so. 

By the time they were allowed to shower, Cas and Dean were panting heavily and sweating. Most of the other students had already left since they either showered home, which Cas couldn’t quite understand and the others had showered already. Cas and Dean had run a few more rounds after coach called them off, so they were one of the last ones to shower. 

Cas had some difficulties to not stare at Dean as they quickly washed and then got dressed. Once fully clothed again, they packed their bags and then headed out to the parking lot.

“Hey Cas, I’m sorry I couldn’t meet yesterday but Sammy had a really bad migraine attack so I had to stay home.” Cas turned and looked at Dean. 

“It’s fine don't worry about it.” Dean was quiet for a bit before he asked Cas with a shy smile.

“Got anything to do now? We could go grab something to eat at the burger place that belongs to Benny’S mom.” Cas thought about it for a bit.

“Yes, that sounds great. I’m starving. I’ll just text Gabe and then we can leave. I’m here with my car but we can just drive separately, right?” Cas said while pulling out his phone. 

“Yeah…” Dean said and Cas could see just the tiniest bit of sadness in his eyes but it was gone as fast as it came.

Cas went to his car and drove behind Dean to the restaurant. His feelings for Dean were rising and it got harder to push them down. Sometimes Dean acted as if they were just friends and other times his touches lingered longer, he had leaned forward and almost kissed Cas... It was confusing and Cas wanted to know where they stood and if there even was a possibility that there could be more. 

Lunch went by nicely, both talking and laughing, the conversation flowing easily as they discussed school and practice. They also talked about their siblings but avoided parents somehow. When it was time to go, Dean insisted on paying, even though he had paid last time they went out but Cas just couldn’t say no to this beautiful boy. 

Outside of the restaurant Dean followed Cas to his car, hands in his pockets, looking almost shy. 

“I had a great time today, Cas,” Dean confessed looking at Castiel with a small smile. 

“Yes me too,” Cas said and looked up at Dean. His eyes caught Dean’s and then they flickered down to his lips. They both leaned forward but before their lips could connect, Dean’s phone vibrated and they pulled away. Dean was blushing as he took the incoming call. 

“Hey, Sammy...wait what?...really? I’ll be there in ten...whatever goodbye bitch.” Dean said before hanging up. Cas had been observing Dean and he hated the timing both of their brothers had right now. 

“I’m sorry Cas, I gotta go. It’s already time to go pick up Sammy…” Dean said apologetically. 

“No, Dean. It’s fine. I’ll see you tomorrow, right?” 

“Yes,” Dean said before h turned around and walked to his own car. Once inside Cas made his way home. He wasn’t in the best mood; not because of his dinner with Dean wasn’t great, it was, but they were about to kiss, again, before the phonecall interrupted them. 

“Hey, Cassie, how was your date with pretty boy?” Gabe teased once Cas was home. Castiel threw him a glare. 

“Shut up and don’t call him that,” Cas grumbled as he walked towards the stairs. “It was good.” 

“But? Something happened to have put you in such a grumpy mood.” Gabe stated. sometimes Cas hated that his brother could read him that good. 

“But his brother called right when we were about to kiss.” Gabe was about to comment, Cas saw it in the mischevious spark in his eyes but he was up the stairs before his brother had a chance.

In the safe space of his room, Cas plopped down on his bed, frowning. Why was all of this so complicated? He sat there for a while before deciding to do his homework for the day. Focusing on them was harder than expected, his thoughts always drifting to Dean and their almost-kisses. Or how hot he looked in that shirt during track today…

In bed that night he decided to distract himself by reading. He was five minutes in when his phone buzzed.

**Dean: Done for the day.**

Attached to the message was a picture of Dean, hair messy as he held up his finished homework with a grin.  _ Oh boy _ . Dean looked gorgeous. Without thinking Cas went into selfie mode and took a picture of himself in bed, holding up his book and send it to Dean with the message. 

**Castiel: Already done, relaxing with a good book.**

Not even a minute later he got a reply back.

**Dean: Nerd.**

Cas smiled and shook his head.

**Castiel: Good night, Dean.**

**Dean: Night Cas.**


	5. Jobs and tight jeans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean helps Cas get a job.  
> They eat ice cream.   
> They have an iteresting encounter in the bathroom...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I'm sorry again for not posting last week but school is so stressful right now.   
> I'll try and upload next week again but I can't promise anything. Hope you like this chapter.

The weekend passed uneventfully. Cas was stuck doing homework and looking for a job. He wanted to help Gabe and since he didn’t have anything to do on the weekend anyway, he thought a job would be a good idea in the long run. So, Saturday noon he was looking online at some job offers when his phone buzzed. 

**Dean: Hey you busy today?**

Castiel smiled and quickly texted back.

**Castiel: Looking for jobs… it’s not easy :)**

Dean didn’t text back immediately and Cas went back to looking. About ten minutes later someone rang the doorbell. Gabe was home today so he opened the door. Maybe he had invited someone over? 

“Cas! You’ve got a visitor.” His brother called. Cas furrowed his brow as he made his way downstairs. Dean was standing at the door, talking to Gabe. 

“Dean, what are you doing here?” Dean smiles shyly, rubbing his neck with his right hand. 

“Uhm… I thought I’d come over but if you’re busy I can go again…” he said already turning around. 

“No, wait… I’ve got time.” Dean’s whole face lit up and he smiled brightly at Cas. That smile...wow. It was beautiful. Gabe threw him a knowing look but Cas ignored it. They were already upstairs when Gabe called.

“Don’t be too loud. Being scarred with hearing your brother doing the horizontal mambo is not something I wanna hear.” Cas eyes widened and he could feel his whole face being on fire. Dean seemed about as embarrassed as he was. 

Once in his room, Cas closed the door, though didn’t lock it, mostly cause then Gabe would  _ really  _ think they were having sex. Cas turned around and saw Dean sitting on his bed, looking at him. 

“What?” Cas asked with a raised eyebrow.    
“Nothing…” Dean mumbled and looked away and Cas  _ swore  _ he saw Dean blushing. “Anyway… what jobs were you looking at?” Cas shrugged and sat down next to Dean, opening his laptop. 

“Well, I thought maybe a coffee shop or a bookstore? but I haven’t found anything yet,” he explained showing Dean the sites he found. Dean read the job offers but he didn’t look pleased. 

“I wouldn’t recommend any of those two. The staff sucks and the managers too.” Cas raised an eyebrow at that. 

“What do you mean by that?” 

“Well, I used to work at the shop but when the manager found out I had gotten into a few fights, he fired me. Said it would be bad for business. And the bookshop owner didn’t even want to hire me because of it…” Dean said, anger visible on his face. 

“Good thing I have you here then so that you can prevent me from working for such people.” Cas smiled and looked over at Dean. They again looked at each other but then Dean cleared his throat. 

“Yeah, you do. But I do know a good bookstore if you’re interested.” Dean said with a smile. “Bobby, my uncle, owns it and if I’m not mistaken he is actually looking for someone.” Cas smile widened as he listened to Dean. He would love to work there. Dean told him that it was a small store that sold old books and a few antiquities. Even if people wouldn’t believe it, Cas was a huge nerd. He normally didn’t show it but he knew that Dean wouldn’t make fun of him. So Dean spent the next twenty minutes telling him about Bobby’s shop and what kind of books he sold; they ranged from myths and legends to books about ancient history. Cas was listening intently, soaking everything in. 

“That sounds awesome,” Cas said once Dean finished. Dean smiled softly at him.

“Yeah? you’re such a nerd, you know that?” Cas nudged him playfully, chuckling. 

“Shut up,” he grumbled. Cas asked if they could go today but Bobby was out of town this weekend so they could come by on Monday. Dean promised Cas that he would wait for him after school. Cas said he could go alone since Dean would have to wait for two hours at school, but Dean insisted until Cas gave in. 

“Fine. We can go together. You happy now?” Cas asked frustrated as he followed Dean to their next class.

“Very,” Dean smirked. Cas just rolled his eyes as they entered the room. It was mostly empty except for Alastair and some of his friends. Cas saw Dean's whole body tense up as they walked to their seat in the second row. 

“Your face healing up good?” Alastair snarled. Dean didn’t say anything, trying really hard to ignore him. 

“You know, haven’t seen your brother around lately.” Dean turned around fast, his eyes angry.

“You shut your mouth. Don’t you  _ dare  _ talk about him.” Dean growled. Cas put a hand on his biceps.    
“Dean he isn’t worth it,” Cas said trying to calm him down. Dean glared at Al for a few more seconds before he turned back around. Cas hand was still on his arm but he drew it back after a bit. 

“You okay?”

“Fine,” Dean grumbled before looking to the front as the teacher entered the room. 

The rest of the lesson passed by without any other incidents and soon they were on their way to Bobby’s shop. 

“Bobby?” Dean called as they entered and walked towards the counter. There was shuffling in the back of the shop before a gruff looking man, with an old baseball cap, came to the front. 

“Dean, how are you boy?” Bobby greeted him with a tight hug. Cas was watching the exchange, rather quietly. He was a bit nervous about this. He wanted to get this job; not only cause he needed the money but also cause this could get him more opportunities to see Dean.  _ You know this sounds super pathetic, don’t you? _ he told himself.  _ Shut up _ Castiel cursed himself. He just hoped that his looks wouldn’t be a problem. The two other men turned to him after talking a bit. 

“You must be the boy Dean’s been talking ‘bout.” Bobby offered a hand that Cas took. 

“Yes, sir, Castiel Novak.” The older man smirked. 

“He’s got some manners. Good, better than Dean over here.” 

“Hey,” Dean said with a fake pout. “I do have manners.” Bobby just laughed. Cas could feel a slight blush on his neck and he tried to not let it show. 

“So. What made you want to get this job?” Bobby asked, arms folded over his chest. 

“I am very interested in books and especially old ones. I’m fascinated with all the stories our ancestors came up with and I think that most of the people who come in here are interested too and it would be nice to share my opinions with them and talk about the books they’re buying.” Cas all but rambled, as he blushed more and more. 

“And the money?” He asked with a raised eyebrow. Cas eyes flickered to Dean but he forced himself to focus back on Bobby.

“Well, the money is also a bonus but I probably would have considered this if there was no money, apart from the job that I would be working in that case,” Cas explained as his blush intensified, palms sweaty. He really hoped he hadn’t fucked up. Bobby looked at him intensely before a small smile appeared on his lips. 

“Good. Let’s go to the back and handle all the paperwork.” Bobby said and turned around, disappearing into the other room. Cas looked at Dean with a huge grin. 

“See? Told you it was a good idea.” Dean said with the same grin. Cas wanted to hug him but he wasn’t sure if he should. So he restrained himself as they followed Bobby. 

Cas filled out everything he could, though since he wasn’t 18 yet, Gabe had to sign some of the forms. He told Cas that he could start the coming Monday, and Cas thanked him before they left.

“You think Gabe will mind?” Dean asked once in the Impala. 

“No don’t think so. I mean he’ll read the contract like five times but other than that, I think he’ll agree.” Cas chuckled. Cas looked over at Dean who seemed to want to say something.    


“Want to go grab some ice cream and celebrate for getting the job?” Dean asked shyly. Cas smiled softly at him. 

“Yes, that sounds great,” Cas admitted. He wanted to spend some time with Dean. It was always nice when they hung out. The thing was, Cas had found out pretty quickly, that Dean looked hot behind the wheel of his Baby. It was always a wonder how Castiel survived the car rides, without kissing Dean. Other than the fact that they weren’t together anyways and it would just make this weird between them if they would remain friends after that. 

At the store Dean got the apple pie flavored one, and Cas took hazelnut. They sat outside, leaning against the hood of the Impala. It was a warm day, considering it was only the end of March. They ate their food in comfortable silence. 

Cas turned to Dean, wanting to ask him something when he saw that Dean had been looking at him already. 

“You uhm…” Dean trailed off as he looked at Dean. Cas raised an eyebrow at him.

“What?”

“You’ve got some ice cream…” Dean pointed at the spot next to Cas’ mouth. 

“Oh…” Castiel hadn’t even noticed it but he made no attempt to do something about it, too mesmerized by the way Dean’s eyes looked in the late sunlight. Dean hesitantly reached out and wiped the ice cream from the corner of his mouth. 

He kept his eyes on Dean’s face, his eyes flickering briefly to his lips and back up at those beautiful green eyes. Dean looked back and then slowly leaned forward, hand still resting net to Cas’ mouth. Their lips were about to meet when a car near them honked loudly, making them both jump away from each other. 

“I… uhm… we should…” Dean said blushing furiously.    
“Yeah, we should…” Cas agreed and they entered the Impala again.

Gabe agreed after making sure that this wasn’t a scam. Cas had rolled his eyes and told him not to worry but Gabe said that even if his boyfriend had offered it, didn’t mean it was clean. Cas just told him to shut it and went to his bedroom. 

The next few days it was a bit awkward between the two of them after their almost kiss. They had eaten together at lunch with Charlie and Benny and it was always fun with them but when they were alone, there was always this… tension between them. 

That’s why Cas had to just get out of class on Friday. Dean had been wearing tight fit jeans and an equally tightly fit shirt that day, and if that wasn’t enough to make Cas go crazy and drooling, he was running a hand through his hair or biting his lip way more often than the last days.    
That’s why Cas found himself standing in front of the mirror, trying to get his thoughts together and not think about Dean. Though that didn’t work because the door opened and Dean walked in, straight towards him. 

“Hey is everythin-” Cas didn’t get to finish that sentence because Dean grabbed his shirt and pushed him against the nearest wall. A hand came up and held his face as Dean leaned forward and finally connected their lips. The kiss was soft and gentle, Dean’s finger rubbing circles on his jaw. When he finally pulled away, Cas just stared at him. 

“I’ve wanted to do that for a really long time.” Dean panted slightly. Cas smirked at him. 

“Took you long enough.” Dean just rolled his eyes before his lips were on Cas’ again, this time the kiss was a bit rougher, his hands winding around the blue-haired boys’ shoulders as he kissed him, pressing his body closer.

Eventually, they went back to class but Cas couldn’t stop smiling for the rest of the day. 

After school, Dean drove Cas home. They spent a few minutes kissing in front of Cas’ house, neither one wanting to stop. 

“You know,” Cas said between kisses. “You could… come over tonight. Gabe will be gone until tomorrow.” Cas said as he pulled away and looked at Dean who was grinning at him. 

“Awesome. I’ll see you tonight then.” Dean stole another quick kiss before Cas finally left. 

Gabe wasn’t home so Cas put on some music on his Bluetooth box and then took a quick shower before he sat down on one of the recliners with a book in hand. He must have been very tired because after some time he fell asleep. 

A knock on the door woke him up. He looked at his phone. “Fuck,” he cursed as he saw the time. 7:13 pm. Shit. Cas quickly ran a hand through his hair before he went to the door, hoping he didn’t look too tired. 


	6. Dates and smoke

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas and Dean have a date.  
> Cas gets a new task at Bobby's shop.  
> The boys talk...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys,  
> I'm sorry I haven't updated in over a month. I have NOT abandoned this story.   
> Life has just been a bit stressful and I also had to plan a trip.   
> I do think I will change my upload schedule to every two weeks instead of weekly. I hope you don't mind and that you enjoy this chapter.  
> Winchester_destiel

Cas opened the door and saw Dean standing in front of him, a small smile on his lips.

“Hey.”

“Hello Dean,” Cas said back before leaning in and giving him a quick kiss. He stepped aside letting Dean in and closing the door behind him. Dean took off his jacket and followed Cas into the kitchen. 

“So…” Dean said shyly.

“Yeah…”  _ ‘why did this feel so awkward?’ _ Cas asked himself. Even in school, and when they had met before that, things hadn’t been that weird between them. 

“Want something to drink?” Cas asked because this silence was horrible. Dean nodded and Cas turned around to get the glasses. When he turned back around he saw Dean’s eyes flicker up to his face and Cas smirked.

“Were you looking at my ass?” Dean blushed furiously at that.

“No…” he stammered. Cas raised a brow.

“Okay Fine. Yes, I was.” Cas smirk just grew. Just like that, things were back to normal. He walked up to Dean and kissed him softly. 

“You have to wait to get that,” he whispered in the most innocent voice. Dean’s eyes widened and his cheeks reddened. 

“I… uhm… wasn’t, I didn’t…” Dean stammered and Cas couldn’ help but think how cute he looked like that. He reached out and cupped Dean’s face, caressing his cheek with his thumb. 

“I know, so what do you say we order some pizza and watch a movie or something? I wanted to cook but I was just so exhausted and-” Dean turned his face and kissed Cas’ palm. 

“It’s okay. Don’t have to apologize. Pizza sounds great,” Dean reassured him softly. Cas nodded and went to order something for them. 

They spend the evening eating after Cas paid, which Dean didn’t want to and it had taken five minutes of stubbornness and kissing him a lot before he finally gave in. 

So right now they were leaning against each other, neither of them being able to keep their hands off of each other for long. It was nothing sexual, just holding hands or occasionally running their hands through the other’s hair. At first at least before this resulted in a small make-out session which was cut short when Cas’ phone rang. 

“Hello?” Castiel asked, not having looked at the caller ID. He was still a bit flushed from the kissing and Dean’s hand was playing with the short hair at the nape of his neck.

“Cassie. How is it going without me?” Gabe’s chipper voice asked from the other end of the line. 

“Things are good,” Cas looked over at Dean with a huge grin. “they are more than good.” Gabriel hummed on the other line. 

“Let me guess. Loverboy is over?” Cas could practically hear the smug tone in his brothers’ voice. 

“Yes, Dean is here.” 

“Hmh. Then I’m gonna leave you to it. I’ll be home around 1 pm tomorrow. Goodbye Cas and have fun.” Cas rolled his eyes but said with a smile. 

“Yeah okay. See you tomorrow. Bye,” then he hung up. Dean was looking at him with an amused expression. 

“What?” Cas asked confused. 

“Nothing, you’re just cute when you’re blushing.” That made Cas blush even more. 

“Shut up,” he grumbled but the corner of his mouth was quirked upwards.

Dean left around 1 am that night. Cas had thought about asking if he wanted to stay over but decided that it was too early for something like that. Cas made Dean promise to send him a text once he got home. Castiel turned off the lights downstairs before he got undressed and fell in his bed in only his boxers. He had just opened his book when his phone buzzed with a message from Dean. 

**Dean: I’m home. See you on Sunday. Good night, Cas.**

The text was accompanied by a picture of Dean in his room, grinning and holding up his thumb. Cas chuckled and texted back quickly. 

**Castiel: Good night Dean.**

A few seconds later. 

**Dean: Don’t I get a picture? *pout***

Cas shook his head but took a quick picture where he was running a hand through his hair, looking down. 

**Dean: Wow.**

**Castiel: Shut up. *Blushing furiously***

**Dean: What?**

**Castiel: Nothing. Good night, Dean.**

**Dean: Night, Cas.**

Two weeks passed since they had first kissed. Two weeks in which Cas couldn’t stop smiling like an idiot. He had started working for Bobby. He seemed pleased with Cas’ work. On Tuesday when Cas’ entered the shop Bobby called him over to the register. 

“Hello Bobby,” Cas greeted as he took off his jacket, still holding it in his hand. 

“Hello Castiel, I don’t want you to clean today.” At the confused expression on Cas`face, Boby tried to clarify. “I want you to handle the register.” Cas didn’t really know what to say because that meant that Bobby trusted him enough to not steal anything. That he thought Cas could handle the responsibility of not only the stress that could occur but also talking to people.

“I… uh yeah. Okay, I can do that,” Cas said blushing a bit at his stuttering. He placed his leather jacket on the chair behind the register before turning back to the other man. 

Bobby chuckled and then showed Cas what he needed to know. Cas had a few difficulties at the beginning but he soon got the hang of it and two hours later he was standing at the register alone while Bobby was somewhere in his office. 

When the bell above the door rang Cas looked up and smiled. Charlie bounced in, a huge grin on her lips. 

“Hey.”

“Hey what are you doing here?” Cas asked as she approached him. 

“I just wanted to see you,” she said and even though Cas didn’t know her that well yet, he knew that this wasn’t true, at least not completely. He raised an eyebrow at her. She sighed. 

“Okay  _ fine _ ,” she whined, “I need your help,” she confessed. 

“For what?” Cas asked confused.

“I may have fucked up a bit…” Cas’ eyes widened a bit. 

“How much did you fuck up?”

“I may have hacked into the school system and changed all the teacher pictures with very good photoshopped pictures of Harry Potter and Star Wars villains…” Cas looked at her for a few seconds before he burst out laughing. 

“This is the funniest thing ever. You are the queen of pranks.” Cas said as he pulled out his phone and went to the school website. And it was true; the pictures were very well photoshopped. They looked almost real.

“Stop laughing. I was angry at Headmaster Crowley. He cut the IT club hours to four a week. That’s not fair.” she whined. Cas just shook his head. 

“It’s not but your revenge is gold.” 

After a bit, Charlie left in a better mood than before after Cas had to talk her out of making a calendar with pictures of their headmaster in bikinis and sending it to everybody at school. Cas had only fifteen minutes left until his shift was over. It had been pretty quiet up until now, only a few customers coming in but they just ordered a few books or looked around mostly.

Cas was packing up a woman’s book while having polite small talk with her, which resulted in him not hearing the bell above the door as someone else entered the store. 

She left and when Cas looked up at the next customer he smiled brightly. 

“Hello, Dean.” Dean grinned back before leaning forward and kissing him gently. 

“Hey,” he said softly, his thumb running over Cas’ cheekbone. 

“You two idjets better not start something in my store.” A gruff voice said. Both boys jumped apart and blushed heavily as they turned to look at Bobby. 

“Sorry Bobby,” Dean said not really looking at him. The older man just shook his head with an amused smile before his face sobered up.

“Dean, can I talk to you? In my office?” He asked and Cas could tell that this was important because Dean’s stand changed completely as he followed him into the office. Dean was walking with his shoulders back, his jaw clenched and hard eyes. 

Cas waited outside patiently, hoping that nothing serious happened.    
Five minutes later Dean came back, his mood a bit damper than before. 

“Everything okay?” Cas asked softly as he reached out and took Dean’s hands, intertwining their fingers. Dean nodded, forcing a smile on his lips. 

“Yeah, everything is fine.” He said trying to sound convincing. Cas decided to drop the subject for now. 

“Okay. What were you doing here anyway?” Dean smiled warmly at him, thankful for the change in conversation. 

“Oh, nothing. I just wanted to walk you home.” Cas’ heart swelled at the thoughtfulness and he smiled widely at Dean. 

“Awesome. I can leave in five minutes.” 

When his shift was over, the two boys walked out of the store and made their way down the almost deserted streets. It was chilly out and not many people were walking in the cold April air. 

Cas took out his cigarettes and lit one, placing it between his lips and inhaling deeply. He felt the nicotine fill his lungs and after a few seconds, he exhaled, releasing the smoke.

“What?” He asked Dean when he turned to look at him. 

“Nothing,” he began but at Cas’ persistent stare he sighed and continued, “I don’t like you smoking.” He admitted. 

“So you’re telling me that you have never smoked?” Cas asked as he took another pull.

“No, I haven’t.” Cas cocked an eyebrow at that. “I mean it. I tried it once but I didn’t like it at all.” They were silent for a bit as they made their way to Cas’ house. 

“I know…” Cas began,” I know you don’t like it but it helps me relax, wind down after a stressful day.” Cas didn’t look at Dean as he talked. Cas was a bit ashamed about it but he didn’t know how else to cope with stress. Dean reached out and intertwined their fingers. 

“Don’t feel bad for smoking. I get it. I don’t like it but I’m not gonna force you to quit only because we are together or make you smoke only when I’m not around. I don’t want to change who you are…” Dean was blushing a bit if Cas could see his colored cheeks in the dim light, “but I would be willing to help you stop, only if you want to, of course. It is your decision and I don’t want to pressure you into anything and-” Dean started rambling and Cas had to admit that it was pretty cute and adorable. 

“Dean,” Cas interrupted him softly, “thank you.” He said and the leaned in and kissed Dean gently. He was glad that Dean understood him and that he would be willing to help Cas if he wanted to. It warmed his heart and he smiled into the kiss.


	7. Unexpected visit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some people are jerks,  
> Dean and Cas talk about their relationship,  
> and Cas gets an unexpected visit...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains homophobic language!
> 
> Hey guys, again sorry that I haven't posted in so long but with this whole virus I didn't have time.   
> School is just bombarding us with homework. Hope you enjoy this chapter.  
> Winchester_destiel

“Dean, come on, we need to study,” Cas groaned. They were sitting in the public library, it was already pretty late, and they were trying to study.  _ Trying to  _ because Dean was currently kissing up and down Cas’s neck, obviously not really interested in learning. The couple was sitting in the back of the library so nobody saw them. It was pretty empty anyway since it was shortly before closing time and only a few people where scattered around the tables. 

“Caaaaas,” Dean said with a small whine, “I’m bored. I don’t want to study anymore. That’s what we have been doing for the last three hours. Please?” He asked as he looked at him with big puppy-dog eyes. Cas sighed. 

“This isn’t fair,” he complained as he started packing away his books. Dean grinned at him. 

“Why?”

“Because I can’t resist you,” Castiel confessed before he turned to face Dean. The other boy had already packed away all of his things and was now grinning at Cas. 

“Let’s go, then.” Cas smiled and Dean reached out and intertwined their fingers. The woman at the front desk did throw them some judging looks but that could have also been because they were giggling pretty loudly as they made their way out of the room since Dean couldn’t stop trying to kiss him while they were making their way outside. 

“You’re an idiot, you know that?” Cas asked once they were on their way back to Cas’s place since Dean had left his car there. 

“I know,” Dean said smugly. Cas just shook his head before he leaned in and gave Dean a long and a bit heated kiss, his tongue dancing with Dean’s. When he pulled back Dean looked actually a bit surprised before smirking. 

“Happy now?” Cas asked.

“Very,” he grinned as Cas fumbled in his coat for his cigarettes but forgot that they were empty. Cas sighed. 

“You okay, babe?” Dean asked concern filling his green eyes. Cas nodded. Since they had talked that night, Cas had tried to smoke less and Dean had been helpful. Always distracting him when he hadn’t actually been craving one but also letting Cas smoke when he knew he needed it. Cas was grateful for that and that’s mostly why he didn’t want to tell Dean; he didn’t want to get across as an addict even though he knew that it was stupid. 

“Come on,” Dean said as he took his hand and dragged him with him. 

“Dean, what are you doing? Where are we going?” Cas asked as he struggled a bit to keep up with him. Dean didn’t answer and instead just pulled him along.    
Suddenly Dean stopped and Cas almost bumped into him. They were standing in front of the drug store in Cas’s neighbourhood. 

“Dean… why?” Cas was still a bit confused. Dean turned towards him and took his hand into his. 

“Don’t be ashamed about it. I know that you wanted to smoke but you didn’t have any. No, I don’t have some weird sixth sense, I just listen when you complain about stuff, even if it’s just that you smoked your last cigarette on your way to the library,” Dean said softly, looking into the other boy’s eyes. Cas was trying to avert his eyes as he blushed heavily. 

“I… uh… you…” Cas didn’t know what to say and so he just leaned forward and kissed him softly. Dean smiled into the kiss before he pulled away. 

“Go and get them then, babe. I’m gonna wait outside and text Sammy.” Dean said. Cas pecked his lips again before he went inside.

* * *

Cas went into the store and walked through the aisles. He thought about getting some snacks too, they didn’t have anything at home anymore. He took their favourite snacks and strolled through the shop. 

He hadn’t noticed the two guys standing near the cash register talking to each other. Cas placed his items on the counter as he waited his turn.

“Look at that punk,” one of the guys said, loud enough for Cas to hear but he chose to ignore it. He was in a good mood and he really didn’t want to get angry. 

“Yeah, I did. But what can you expect, he’s obviously a fag.”

“How do you know?”

“He has that flag of theirs on his jacket,” the first boy said and probably pointed at Cas back, where he had a pin of the gay pride flag pinned to his leather jacket.

He tried to ignore them, he really did, but now he was pissed and he would not just stand there while some assholes were homophobic towards him. 

“Could you keep your fucking opinions to yourself?” Cas growled as he turned to face them. They looked at him with amusement.

“Look, he’s talking.” The taller one, with blond hair and a ratty blue hoodie, said.

“Shut up,” Castiel growled. The shorter one took a step towards Cas, obviously not afraid at all. He had dark hair, almost black, his clothes a bit nicer than this friends. He was clad in a grey sports-jacket and jeans, his hair combed back. 

“Why so rude? Have to hurry off to go suck some dick?” He asked with a chuckle. The punch Cas landed didn’t even register in his brain until he saw that the other boy was holding his cheek and his own knuckles were hurting slightly. 

“Hey! No fighting in my shop. Take this outside if you want!” The man at the cash register said with anger. 

Cas all but ignored him, eyes still fixed on them. He was seething with anger. He didn’t hear the bell above the door as someone else rushed in. Only when a hand was placed on his shoulder and drew him back a bit did he snap out of it. 

“You two better get out of here before I rip your lungs out,” Dean said, voice dangerously low. The two boys looked at him for a few seconds before the taller shrugged his shoulders and said.

“Come on. The fairy isn’t worth it.” Cas was still pissed and he wanted to say something but Dean, probably sensing this, tightened his grip slightly on Cas’s arm. They left the store and Cas relaxed slightly. Dean cupped his cheek, eyes worried. 

“Cas, you alright? Did they hurt you?” 

“Yes, I’m fine and no they didn’t hurt me but they can’t just say that.” Cas was still upset but he was relaxing more and more in Dean’s presence.

“I know, babe. Sadly, they can but their words don’t mean anything. They probably just said that so they could feel cool and like they’re tough,” Dean soothed him, taking his hand in his and kissing the blue-eyed boys knuckles. Cas smiled at the gesture, his cheeks reddening a bit. 

“Wanna get out of here? Did you pay already?” Cas shook his head and quickly paid for his things and the pack of smokes, the shopkeeper obviously still not pleased that he caused a scene in his shop. 

Once outside Cas lit his cigarette and inhaled deeply, the nicotine already starting to calm him further. 

“What happened exactly?” Dean asked as they made their way to Cas’s house. 

“They started insulting me and I wouldn’t have done anything but they were just such dicks…” Cas said frustrated. Dean was quiet for a bit, his hand slipping into Castiel’s, intertwining their fingers. 

“It’s okay. I would have probably done the same. I have, actually…” he admitted quietly, “but that’s a story for another time.” Dean added quickly as they stood in front of the Novak’s house. Dean already pulled out his keys to the Impala since he had parked it here but looked back up at Cas who had a small smile on his lips. 

“You okay?” Dean asked a bit concerned. 

“Yes,” Cas answered, leaning forward, pressing their lips together. The kiss was sweet and Dean let one of his hands come up and run through the other boy’s hair. The two of them stayed there in front of the building as they melted against each other. Only after what felt like hours did Cas slowly pull back. 

“I think I should go inside. But we’ll see each other tomorrow, right?” Cas said with another small peck to Dean’s lips. “Good night, Dean.” Dean smiled warmly at him.

“Night, Cas.” And then he was in his car and drove home. 

* * *

After the exam the next Friday Cas and Dean had been studying for in the library, they met up with Charlie and Benny to celebrate. They had decided to get some burgers and sit in the park since it was a pretty warm day at the end of April. 

“I’m telling you, we have to make a  _ Harry Potter _ Marathon, it will be fun,” Charlie said excitedly, trying to convince Dean and Benny who still weren’t thrilled about the idea.

“She is right, it will be fun, especially after the first two movies I-”

“What do you mean after the first two?” The redhead asked almost insulted. 

“Oh come on Charlie, yes the first two are great but in the third, we get Remus and Sirius,” Cas said as he took a sip from his drink.

“Yes they are great but-” 

“No buts, they were my first crushes, first in the books and then the actors in the movies.” Charlie just shrugged as she popped a fry into her mouth.

“Should I be jealous, babe?” Dean asked teasingly. Cas turned to him with an affectionate eye-roll. 

“No don’t need to. I still like you the most,” Cas grinned before leaning up and pecking his cheek. Cas leaned against Dean’s shoulder as they continued talking. 

After another hour they finally decided to call it a day and everybody made their way home; Cas walked back with Dean since they would pass Dean’s house anyway. 

“You know…” Dean began as they rounded the corner to his house. Cas turned to him to have a better look. 

“Yeah?” he asked not knowing what Dean wanted to say, “What do you say about coming over next Saturday?” Cas smiled fondly at him, squeezing his hand lightly. 

“Sounds good. Around midday?” Dean nodded smiling too. Cas gave Dean a quick kiss once they were in front of his house and then made his way home. 

He pulled out his cigarettes and lit one up, taking the long way home. He wasn’t in a rush, the weather was great and he was in a good mood. He thought about getting a new tattoo but he didn’t have enough money for that, at least not at the moment. Maybe in a few months when he had enough money from working at Bobby’s shop.

* * *

The next Saturday, Cas made his way to Dean’s house. It was rare that they met at Dean’s place and Cas still didn’t know exactly why. He only suspected that it had something to do with Dean’s father. 

They were snuggled against each other watching Tv when Cas spoke up. 

“Hey Dean?” he asked shyly. 

“Yea babe?” he asked, turning to face Cas better. Cas hesitated for a moment before saying.

“So uhm...I wanted to ask...god this is stupid, uhm are we, you know...boyfriends?” he asked, a blush creeping up his face. He was pretty nervous about asking that, which was definitely not how he normally was but with Dean...it was just different. He had thought about this for a long time but had always thought it was either too early to label their relationship or he never found the right moment but right now it felt right to ask. Dean smiled softly at him, as he cupped his cheek, leaning forward and kissing him once.

“Of course we are if you want to of course. I would love to call you my boyfriend.” Cas blushed even more, as a sheepish grin made its way onto his lips.

“Really? Awesome, now come here.” Cas pulled Dean close and kissed him passionately. Dean melted against his lips, moaning into the kiss. He laid Cas down again, pressing his hips down, earning a moan from Cas.

“Hmmm so good,” Cas said against his lips, as he thrust upwards. They kissed and ground against each other for some time before Cas’s phone rang. They pulled away reluctantly and Cas took the call.

“Hey, what is it?” Cas asked his brother. 

“Just wanted to know if you can pick up some bread on your way home, you’ll be here soon, right?” Gabe asked. He did sound kind of weird as if he wasn’t telling something but Cas wouldn’t pry. He looked at the time and noticed that it was already 6:25 pm.

“Shit, yeah I’ll be there in 20,” Cas said before he said goodbye and hung up. Dean looked at him questioningly. 

“I’ll have dinner with Gabe and I totally forgot about it. I’m sorry. I gotta go,” Cas said apologetically.

“It’s aright, don’t worry. I’ll see you on Monday, right?” Dean asked as he led him to the door. 

“Course you will.” Cas smiled and turned around to open the door when Dean put a hand on his shoulder holding him back.

“Don’t I get a goodbye kiss from my boyfriend?” He asked innocently. Cas couldn’t help the warmth that spread inside of him at that word.  _ Boyfriend _ . It just sounded right. Without another word, he leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to Dean’s lips. The other boy melted against him but pulled away before they could get lost in each other, as they often tended to do. 

Cas was smiling the whole way home, not even minding that he had to go to the supermarket and get bread. Once outside of the shop, he lit up a cigarette. He was in such a good mood and nothing could destroy that. 

At least that’s what he thought until he saw the car in the driveway. At once, his whole mood dropped and he really didn’t want to go inside but he knew that his brother was waiting for him. 

Castiel could hear voices coming from the kitchen as he took off his shoes and made his way to the kitchen. Gabe was leaning against the counter, a beer in hand, a man standing opposite to him with a glass of some stronger alcohol in hand. They turned towards him when he was in the doorway and the man didn’t smile when he saw him but rather pressed his lips together in a tight line. Cas already hated this. 

“How long are you staying?” Cas asked not even caring if he was polite or not. 

“That’s no way to greet your father, Castiel.” The man said a dangerous edge to his voice. 

“Oh I’m sorry that I’m not thrilled to see you,” he muttered as he placed the bag on the counter next to Gabe who shot him a warning look. 

“Not long, I was just passing through and thought I could visit my children,” Bartholomew said, gulping down the rest of his drink. 

“Oh, so you remember that you even have children?” Cas askes sarcastically. 

“Cas,” Gabe warned. Cas looked at him before he sighed and tried to push his anger down. “Fine.” 

Dinner was awkward and uncomfortable, his father obviously not that happy to be there. He did ask Cas if he had a girlfriend yet, to which Cas didn’t even answer. He thought about telling his father about Dean, but he didn’t want to give his father the chance to insult Dean. 

Once dinner was over, Gabe offered to do the dishes so Cas could go to his room. He flopped down on his bed with a sigh before changing into pyjamas. Castiel considered calling Dean but decided against it, not wanting to burden him with his own problems right now. So after he read a bit and watched a few episodes of some sitcom, he turned off the light and stared at the ceiling. It was already around 3 am but he couldn’t sleep. Not when his father was in this house, demanding that they were nice to him after he had been a horrible parent ever since  _ The Accident _ . When Cas finally fell asleep, the first streaks of sunlight were visible in the sky.


	8. Bad news

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Castiel has an argument with his father,  
> Cas and Dean spend some time together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry guys that it took me again so long but I was working on my final draft for the Perfect Pair Bang I am doing.  
> Link to the fic: [Of Feathers and Secrets](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23971825/chapters/57658111)  
> Link to the art: [Art for Of Feathers and Secrets](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23969578)
> 
> Hope you enjoy this chapter.  
> Winchester_destiel

When Cas woke up the next morning, he had barely slept. His mood was already low due to his father staying there but one look at his phone made him feel guilty; Dean had sent him a few texts yesterday asking if he came home okay and even called him.  _ Fuck why was he like this? _ He looked at the time, 10:23 am. 

**Dean: Are you at home?**

**Dean: Cas? Are you okay?**

_ 2 Missed calls from Dean. _

**Dean: Hope you’re at home. Maybe you’re already asleep… if that’s the case, sleep well babe. Good night.**

Cas sighed. He should have checked his phone yesterday but he had completely forgotten with Bartholomew being there. Cas got dressed and then went downstairs. He decided that he would go and visit Dean. Not only to apologize but also to get out of this house. Gabe wasn’t in the kitchen and Cas remembered that he had to take care of some things in his office, even though it was Sunday. Bartholomew was sitting at the kitchen table, drinking coffee and reading something on his phone. 

“Morning,” Cas said and poured himself a cup of the warm liquid.

“Good morning, Castiel. I was hoping we could have breakfast together.” His father said in a calm voice. Cas couldn’t help the sarcastic tone in his voice when he answered. 

“You want to have breakfast? With me? Why?” Bart placed his phone down and Cas could already see the anger slowly rising inside of him. 

“Because I want to spend some time with you.” Cas downed the last of his coffee and placed the empty mug on the counter. 

“Well, good for you but I have already made plans.” Bart raised an eyebrow at that. 

“Really? With whom?” 

“None of your business.” Cas snapped back. Bartholomew scoffed at that.

“It is my business if you want me to allow you to leave.” Cas raised an eyebrow at that. Was his father really trying to forbid him to go out?

“Oh so  _ now  _ you want to play the father card? You’re barely home, and when you are, you pretend that we should just stop our lives and do whatever you want? No, I’m leaving!” Cas snapped, anger now running through his veins. His father stood up and set his jaw. 

“I am your father and as long as you are not 18, you do as I tell you. If you want to do whatever you want, then you have to move out first. You know what? Since you’re not showing me respect, the moment you turn 18, you are moving out of my house.” And with that, Bart left, slamming the door to the guest room shut. Cas looked after him as the words slowly sank in. His father just threw him out. Huffing, he grabbed his jacket and then left, pulling out his smokes and lighting one, the nicotine not really doing anything. 

After the third one, he finally started to relax. Twenty minutes later he was in front of Dean’s house. He hoped that it was okay he just showed up. He knocked on the door and a few moments later, Dean was standing in front of him, a bit surprised but happy. 

“Hey,” Cas said a bit embarrassed. “I hope it’s okay that I just showed up. I can go again if it’s a bad time.” He rambled. Dean stepped closer and cupped his cheek with his hand, making Cas look up at him. 

“It’s okay, Cas. Don’t worry.” Dean started but Cas shook his head. 

“No, it’s not. I should have texted you back yesterday but then my father was home and I was just so angry and I forgot and-”    
“Cas…” Dean interrupted him softly, stroking his thumb over Cas’s cheek. “It’s okay. I’m not mad. Wait, your father?” Dean cocked his head to the side. Cas just nodded. 

“Want to go get breakfast?” Cas asked blushing. Dean nodded and about ten minutes later, they were on their way to  _ The Roadhouse _ . Even though it functioned as a bar, in the morning you could eat breakfast too.

“So… your dad is here?” Dean asked after they had already ordered. Cas nodded grimly.

“Yes, yesterday, that’s why I didn’t text back. I had my phone on silent mode. Sorry for that,” Cas said blushing but Dean just shook his head. 

“It’s okay, baby. I told you I don’t mind.” He grabbed Cas’s hand that was resting on the table and gave it a light squeeze. 

“My father and I don’t have the best relationship… with him not accepting my sexuality and all.” The waiter came and brought them their drinks. They clinked them together and took a sip before Cas continued. “And well today it escalated a bit. He apparently wanted to eat breakfast together, for whatever reason, but I told him that I already got plans and then we argued and the short version is, that he’s kicking me out of the house the moment I turn 18, which is in about three months…” Dean looked at him unbelievingly.

“He what? He can’t just throw you out.” He complained. 

“Sadly, he can. I’ll be an adult then and he isn’t legally bound to provide for me anymore.” Cas said upset.

“Where are you gonna go then?” That was a question Cas hadn’t thought about yet. He would probably be able to still stay at home since his father was rarely there but maybe now he would come home more often, just to check if Cas was still there. The problem was that his father always came by unannounced, which had sometimes resulted in uncomfortable situations…

“I haven’t thought about that yet. I mean I could always just rent a motel room for some time, or crash on someone’s couch until I find something.” Cas shrugged taking a sip from his coffee. Dean looked at him with slight worry in his green eyes and Cas automatically wanted to take all the worry away. 

“Don’t worry, I still have a few months until I turn 18. I’ll figure something out.” Cas tried to reassure him, even though he wasn’t so positive about that himself.

“I wish you could just sleep on our sofa but dad won’t be happy about that. Especially if he knew that you’re my boyfriend.” Cas mouth quirked up a bit at the word boyfriend. Castiel was still not completely used to the fact that he was together with Dean. That he was allowed to just kiss this beautiful boy in front of him.

“What?” Dean asked after Cas had apparently spaced out looking at Dean. He blushed.

“Nothing, sorry. We’ll find something, okay? Even if it’s not your sofa.” Cas smiled at the green-eyed boy who nodded with a small smile himself.

They spend the morning in together; after they left the diner, the couple walked through town, holding hands and avoiding the topic of Castiel’s father completely. It was a great time, though Dean had to work and Cas also had a late shift at the bookshop. Though they promised to text and talk on the phone tonight. Dean walked Cas home and gave him a quick kiss goodbye. He saw that neither his fathers nor Gabriel’s car was there which was a relief, at least he wouldn’t have to deal with his father’s anger or his brother’s disappointment, for now anyway.

Cas flopped down on his bed and looked at his phone. It was only 2 pm, which meant he had another two hours until he needed to be at Bobby’s shop. Cas put on some music and then made himself comfortable on his bed and took his book, deciding that maybe he could get some reading done. Though his thoughts drifted off; first to his father’s words from this morning.

He still couldn’t believe that was going to be homeless the moment he turns 18. Who says something like this to their child only because they don’t agree with who they are. But soon those thoughts got replaced by a more happy topic, which was thinking about Dean. Castiel was so lucky that Dean wants him and doesn’t mind all of his problems, though he doesn’t even know everything about Cas’s past yet… 

Once it was time to go to work, Cas put on his leather jacket and shoes. He was about to leave when he remembered that he left his wallet in his room. Quickly he got it and then he heard the front door open and close again. 

“Gabe?” Cas called walking into the hallway but tensed up when he saw his father standing in the entryway. 

“Hello, Castiel.” His father’s voice was as cold as always when he was speaking with Cas. 

“Yeah, I have to go so…” Cas said making a step towards the door but his father obviously wouldn’t let him leave like this. 

“I am not allowing you to leave.” Castiel raised an eyebrow at him. No way he actually meant that. Cas really didn’t want to have another argument. 

“I have to go to work,” Cas explained through gritted teeth. 

“You work?” 

“Yes, actually I do and since you are gonna throw me out once I turn 18, I should be able to have some money.” Cas was getting irritated and upset but before his father could answer to that, Cas’ phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and a smile sneaked onto his lips. 

**Dean: Hey babe. Charlie asked if we want to hang out tonight at her place. What do you say?**

**Castiel: Of course I want to. When do I have to be there?** Dean answered almost immediately. 

**Dean: I thought I could pick you up after work and we could go together? Your shift ends around 8 pm, right?** Bartholomew cleared his throat impatiently but Cas ignored him.

**Castiel: Sounds good and yes I’m finished at 8 pm.**

**Dean: Great. See you soon.** Cas pocketed his phone again and looked up at his father who was observing him with a raised eyebrow. 

“Who was that?” He demanded. Cs just shrugged. 

“A friend and if you’ll excuse me I have work.” And with that, he pushed past his father and made his way to work, lighting a cigarette. His father was always making him so angry and tensed up but his mood brightened as he thought about his plans for this evening.

Once at the bookshop, he had a lot of work to do; Cas had to reorganize a few shelves since they got more books and when he had finished that he was at the cash register. It was fairly busy for a Saturday evening, which at least meant he didn’t have time to think about his father. Ten minutes before his shift was over the bell above the door jingled. He hadn’t really expected another customer so close before closing time but when he looked up he was met with bright, green eyes.


	9. Distractions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some dating stories are told,  
> Bartholomew isn't happy with Cas,  
> Dean and Cas go on a date...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, next chapter is finally here.   
> I hope you like it. A bit of fluff before things get a bit angsty...  
> Winchester_destiel

“Hey,” Dean smiled and leaned over the counter, giving Cas a small kiss.

“Hello, Dean.” Cas smiled back. “You’re early.” Dean just shrugged.

“Well, I wanted to see you and also to ask Bobby something.” Cas looked at him quizzically. 

“Is everything okay?” Dean smiled at him and it looked genuine. “Yes, everything is more than fine.” He pecked Cas on the lips and then disappeared into Bobby’s office.

Dean came back about ten minutes later while Cas was just putting on his coat. 

“Ready?” He asked. Cas nodded and after saying good-bye to Bobby, they left and made their way to Charlie’s place. They were almost there when Cas spoke up. 

“My father didn’t want to let me leave for work today…” Cas said fidgeting with his hands. He looked over to Dean and saw his jaw tensing. 

“What do you mean by that?” Dean gritted out. Cas shrugged. 

“He apparently wanted to play the ‘I-am-your-father-and-you-do-what-I-tell-you-card,’ but I didn’t care. I mean he’s barely home, he doesn’t get to do that.” Dean huffed at that. 

“Yes, that’s true. But don’t let him get you down babe, okay?” Dean reached out and took Cas’s hand in his, squeezing tightly before he let go to shift gear. 

Once at Charlie’s place, Cas could finally relax and have some fun. They ordered some pizza and watched reruns of  _ Friends  _ while talking and letting the show play in the background.

“Okay, okay. So, do you have any kind of weird first date stories?” Charlie asked at one point. Dean let out a small chuckle. 

“Yes. So I was at this museum with this girl…” He looked at the other two who looked at him with raised eyebrows, “Yes, I go to museums too. Anyway, she asked me to take photos of her in front of some statues and paintings. I mean I didn’t really think anything of it. After the date, I am on Facebook and there is a link she posted… well, she had photoshopped famous people into the pictures. And some were very funny but there were also a few disturbing ones and after that, I just didn’t respond anymore to her texts until she finally stopped.” Cas looked at him for a few seconds before he started laughing. This was way funnier than he expected. 

“Oh, shut up. As if you don’t have any weird stories.” Dean said with a small smile while Charlie just snickered. 

“No, I really don’t. First off we were moving a lot so I didn’t really try to have a relationship because I knew it wouldn’t last. The few people I did date, were pretty relaxed, to be honest.” Cas admitted. He had not dated a lot of people but he didn’t mind and he knew that Dean didn’t care either. Dean reached out and intertwined their fingers. Cas smiled at him and squeezed his hand. 

“So, what about you, Charlie?” Cas asked with a grin. She rolled her eyes at him.

“Oh, well… you know, not that many. Do you know how hard it is to find gay girls? If you complement one, they most times just think you’re being nice. It is so hard but luckily I have Dorothy now.” She grinned back with a dreamy look in her eyes. 

They left Charlie’s place around 2 am. Cas had already told Gabe that he would stay out late, and even though his brother hadn’t been very happy about that, considering that he had school tomorrow, Cas had convinced him after he told him that he had to be at school at 10 am instead of at 8.

“This was fun,” Cas said once in the Impala. Dean nodded in agreement. 

“It sure was.” Dean reached out and intertwined their fingers as they turned onto Cas’s street. Dean parked Baby next to Gabe’s car and turned off the engine. Cas turned towards Dean with a grin. 

“Thanks.”

“For what?” Dean asked a bit confused, cocking his head to the side. Cas bit his lip, blushing softly. 

“Uh… for distracting me today and being there for me.” Cas rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. 

“Of course. That’s what a boyfriend is there for,” he smiled reassuringly and leaned forward, capturing Cas’s lips in a gentle kiss. Cas kissed back automatically, his hand coming up and resting on the side of Dean’s neck. Slowly the kiss turned more passionate and soon, both of them were panting slightly, as they kissed, hands roaming over shoulders and necks and running through hair. Dean was the first to pull back, though only an inch or two. 

“I think I should…” He trailed off with a dazed smile. 

“Yeah… uh, good night then.” 

“Good night, babe.” Dean pecked Cas on the lips and then Cas left the car. Dean waited until Cas was at his door before he peeled out of the driveway. 

When Cas entered the house quietly, he still had a huge smile on his lips. The smile faded though when he saw his father standing next to the window in the living room, an almost disgusted look on his face as he turned to his son. 

“Where were you?” He asked accusingly. Cas raised an eyebrow at him, taking off his jacket.  “At a friends house,” Cas explained calmly. Bartholomew scoffed. 

“A friends house, huh? And who is this friend, that just drove you here, who didn’t look like just a friend to me?” Cas could feel his good mood slowly disappear. 

“None of your business,” Cas said through gritted teeth. His father was angry now, really angry as he walked up to Cas. 

“None of my business? None of my business?” His voice growing louder. 

“No,” Cas answered. Barth took a deep breath through his nose. 

“And even if it’s none of my business, you are still out on a school night at two in the morning.” Cas huffed humorlessly. “Oh, I didn’t know that you actually cared when I come home, considering you are  _ never  _ here,” Cas exclaimed. “Maybe, I should be here more often then.” Cas was about to answer when someone cut him of. 

“Cas, no,” Gabe said sternly, standing in the doorway. “Go to your room, now!” Cas knew it was best not to argue with his brother, especially not when he looked as pissed off as he did right now. Cas took a last look at his father before he turned on his heels and left. He knew Gabe would scold him tomorrow and he was not looking forward to it. 

Cas quickly undressed, brushed his teeth and then fell into bed, more exhausted than expected. He didn’t sleep well though, his mind racing a hundred miles an hour. 

The next morning Cas was awake at 6:36 am already, gazing at his ceiling. He barely slept, maybe two hours tops. He didn’t want to stand up because that would mean facing his brother’s anger and he wasn’t ready for that. Cas knew he should behave but every time he was around his father, he just couldn’t help the sarcastic comments and the anger inside of him. Maybe it was because he knew his father didn’t accept him for who he was. Maybe it was because, after  _ The Accident _ , his father blamed him for what happened. 

Cas sighed and took his phone. He turned it on and went a bit through Instagram. About five minutes later he got a message from Dean. 

**Dean: Morning, babe.** Cas smiled, then frowned at his screen. It wasn’t even 7 am, why was Dean awake already?

**Castiel: Good morning. Why are you already awake?**

**Dean: I could ask you the same question.** Cas rolled his eyes at the screen. 

**Castiel: Couldn’t sleep. What about you?**

**Dean: Forgot to close my blinds yesterday and now it’s super bright inside of my room. Anyway, that’s not what I wanted to ask. You want me to come pick you up before school?**

**Castiel: Yes that would be great.**

**Dean: Awesome. I’ll be there around 9:30 am. See you soon.**

**Castiel: See you.**

Cas got up after another five minutes and went to take a shower before he got dressed and then went downstairs. The kitchen was empty, which was a relief to him so he made himself a cup of coffee and leaned against the counter, scrolling through his phone. 

“Good morning,” Gabe greeted about twenty minutes later, walking into the kitchen and preparing a coffee for himself. 

“Morning,” Cas said, avoiding to look at his brother. The tension was slowly building between them and it made Cas uncomfortable.

“We need to talk,” Gabriel said once he finished making his coffee and leaned against the table opposite to his brother. 

“I know…” Cas said quietly. 

“Cas what is going on? I know you and dad don’t get along, and I’m not saying you should have a great relationship but…” Gabe stopped and looked towards the door to make sure Bartholomew wasn’t there, “I mean he threw you out, what the hell are you going to do in a few months?” Cas sighed and raised his eyes, meeting his brothers gaze and shrugged. 

“Don’t know. I’ll figure it out.” Gabe scoffed. 

“Yeah sure. You know I could talk with dad-”   
“No. I don’t want you to talk to him. I will figure it out.” Cas said determinedly. He would much rather sleep on friends couches than owe something to his father. Gabe looked at him before sighing in defeat. 

“Okay. Just… try and not provoke him too much? He said he would leave on Wednesday.” Cas nodded and put his empty mug on the counter. 

“Okay, I will try.”

He spent his time until Dean came, in his room, mostly to avoid his father and also to finish some homework he still had to do. 

Dean texted him at 9:27 that he was outside and Cas quickly packed his backpack and snatched his coat before saying a quick goodbye to Gabe.

“Morning,” he greeted once in the Impala. Dean leaned over and pecked him on the lips.

“Good morning, beautiful.” Dean grinned and Cas couldn’t help the blush that coloured his cheeks.

“Everything okay?” Dean asked as they pulled out of the driveway. Cas shrugged. “Had another encounter with my dad yesterday night. He was up and apparently saw us from the window…” Dean glanced over to him and then back at the road. 

“And? What did he say?” The panic in Dean’s voice was evident but Cas put a hand on his knee to calm him down.

“It’s okay. I told him that it’s none of his business who I date. Wasn’t happy about that answer but Gabe interfered before things could escalate.” Dean nodded. “Good, that’s good.” He took Cas’s hand in his, intertwining their fingers. 

The rest of the drive was silent, only the music playing softly in the background.

The day went by somewhat quickly and soon he was sitting at lunch together with Dean. Charlie didn’t come to school today, she said she had  _ lady trouble _ and Benny could already go home since his last class was cancelled. Cas was in the middle of telling Dean something when the door opened and Alastair walked in, a smirk on his lips. Cas glared at him, his whole body tensing.

“What is going on?” Dean asked who had his back to them. Cas tore his gaze away from them and looked back at Dean. 

“Alastair,” Dean gritted his teeth as he slowly looked over his shoulder to the door. Al apparently spotted them, his smirk growing wider while he walked through the room and sat down at a table where he could observe them. Cas tried to ignore him, not think about him because that’s just what he wants, attention.

“Hey,” Dean put his hand on Cas’s on top of the table. “Relax. It’s okay. Don’t worry.” Cas nodded, turning his hand in Dean’s grip and intertwining their fingers. Dean smiled softly at him before an idea struck him. 

“Hey, what do you say we skip the last two periods?” Cas smirked back and nodded. “Fuck, yeah.” 

“Okay, come on,” Dean all but dragged him out of the cafeteria and to the parking lot before Cas stopped.

“Don’t you have to pick up Sam after school?” Dean looked back at him but shook his head. “No, he’s gonna go to a friend of his after school and they’ll also bring him back home later,” Dean explained as he searched for his keys. 

Once on the road, Cas turned to him. “Where to now?” He asked curiously. Dean just grinned at him but didn’t say anything. They drove for fifteen minutes and then stopped in front of a small supermarket. 

“Let’s get some food and then we will continue.” He said and exited the car. Cas followed behind him. He caught up with his boyfriend and reached out, grabbing his hand. Quickly, they got everything they needed; some snacks, a bottle of coca-cola and some other things such as packed sandwiches and Cas also got a new pack of cigarettes with his fake ID.

“You’ve got a fake ID, with a lawyer as a brother? Isn’t that ironic?” Dean teased once inside the Impala again. Cas just rolled his eyes at him. “Maybe, but he hasn’t said anything about it yet, and soon I’ll be old enough anyway.” Dean just smiled and turned the volume of the music up a bit, as they pulled onto the freeway and out of the city. 


	10. Announcement

Hey guys,

after thinking about it a lot, I have decided to pause this fic for now. A lot is going on in my life and I sadly cannot find any inspiration to continue this.

I will **not** abandon this fic, I am planning to continue after the summer, if things are better.

I hope you understand and hopefully, we will see each other again, soon.

Love, Winchester_destiel.

PS: I may write some one-shots over the summer, so you might still get content.


End file.
